Dead Space: The last voyage of the Dauntless
by SentryReynolds
Summary: The Dauntless, an aged vessel, attempts an ambitious operation to restart the planet crack of Aegis VII, one month after the supposed terrorist attack. But Chief Engineer Jason Mason has some reservations about the operations and maybe, his concerns aren't unwarranted. Should be 10 chapters long and will be uploaded every Wednesday. Criticism is welcome. Enjoy and thanks in advance
1. Chapter 1

_Chapter One_

 _2508,_

 _One month after the Aegis VII incident_

 _Shockspace_

Shockspace is often mistaken for being an empty void of nothingness when in reality, it is filled with a light blue vortex. Though many didn't take notice of bluish hue as many ships used blast shields to cover any glass. The _Dauntless,_ a Hephaestus class engineering vessel slightly smaller than a planet cracker, hurtled through shockspace. A legacy vessel, she was 38 years old and showing that age. She was a kilometre in length, 900 meters in width and 400 meters in height. Shaped like a giant rectangle with a tapered bow, she had various jagged edges as well as a central semi-circle like area beneath the engines which housed gravity tethers. Dotted around the ship were Asteroid Defence Cannons, simple rail guns driven by computer targeting to destroy any oncoming projectiles. As the ship was deep into a shockspace jump, it was largely quiet with only a skeleton crew being around to keep an eye the ship's progress. Jason Mason rubbed his neck wearily as he stood slowly, stretching his back out. He glanced at his small cot where his girlfriend Kate Mera lay. She was still fast asleep, snoring lightly. Jason was a class 3 engineer whose speciality was big ships like the _Dauntless_. He'd been contracted by the ship's captain to generally keep the vessel together with a shoe string budget. Jason rarely outstayed his welcome on ships but the _Dauntless_ had something about her that made it hard to leave. Jason was rather tall, standing at six feet with a scattered muscle and a husky build. His long tussled brown hair was contrasted by his striking blue eyes. He looked at his appearance in the mirror and decided to keep the modest beard he'd been growing. He'd been awake long enough to change into his engineering overalls, stained with grease and oil. Once he got down to the engineering deck, he'd change into his engineering RIG. He heard Kate stirring and glanced back. Kate was of average height with short brunette hair and brown eyes. She was slender but toned with more visible muscle than Jason. She worked on the medical deck as the senior medical officer. She was wearing a short white t-shirt with panties. Kate and Jason had been together for nearly nine years and were completely inseparable. Though they'd had postings on different ships, they never drifted apart. The _Dauntless_ was the first time they'd been paired together, and it had been a wonderful posting. Despite the Dauntless' age, wear and tear, she was a good ship. The people were nice, and the community was that of a family. Everyone knew each other's name and were always accepting of new members. As chief engineer, Jason was responsible for the entire deck and the engineers. Despite the task at first seeming daunting, most of the jobs were simple. However, the latest expedition had Jason on edge. It was no secret something had happened on Aegis VII but what exactly happened was harder to ascertain. There were no survivors but instead there were rumours, all of which sounded horrifying. It was either a terrorist attack, a mining job gone south or, the weirdest option to Jason, an alien attack. Now, the _Dauntless_ Captain James Anders had decided to run a salvage operation, planning a colossal 26-hour shockpoint jump to the remains of Aegis VII. Jason's concerns had fallen on deaf ears, something that annoyed him. He continued to frown as he heard Kate stir from her sleep.

She blinked away sleep as she lazily glanced up at Jason. "Honey, what are you doing? We're still," she glanced at her watch and almost jumped out of bed. "Shit, 20 minutes till shock out. Oh crap, I've got to be at med bay in five minutes." She noticed her boyfriend's continued annoyance and raised an eyebrow. "Hey, are you alright?"

Jason shook his head, dismissing her concerns. "I'm fine, just, I don't know tired."

She glided over towards him and wrapped her arms around his broad torso, her voice taking on a seductive tone. "Why? Didn't you get enough sleep?" She said with a slight giggle.

Jason chuckled. "You're such a bad influence."

She smiled sweetly. "Guilty." She paused. "C'mon, Jace, whatever it is, we'll be fine. The Captain said the salvage op would be fifteen hours max."

Jace scoffed and rolled his eyes. "Not if you take the extra ten hours to recharge the shockpoint drive, if we can even do that now. That thing's so old, I'm surprised we lasted four hours. The techs and I can keep it running but it's got two, maybe three jumps left tops. If we get stranded here, it'll take a month or longer to get back to the nearest weigh station."

Kate squeezed him softly, speaking in a soft soothing tone. "That's why this op will hit pay dirt. If the yield is what was reported, we'll be able to repair the drive and refit the entire ship."

"Ship should be sold for scrap." He muttered under his breath, too quietly for Kate to hear. He turned and kissed her, lingering for a few moments before breaking away. "As much as I wouldn't mind delaying your return to medbay, I need to find Alex and head to the bridge. Captain will probably want a report."

Kate kissed him again before disappearing into the bathroom. Jason consulted his RIG and downloaded the latest ship report. His frown slowly turned into a full-blown scowl as he began cursing under his breath. He stormed out of his cabin and headed down the narrow corridor towards the nearby tram station. He side stepped the odd person, keeping his head down as he pondered the op. He still had a mountain of questions, but he shut them down. He needed to be focused in order to keep his fellow crew mates out of danger and get them home safely. A sudden loud voice caught him off guard.

"Jace, what's going on, man?" Alex Danton was near enough a mountain of a man, standing at six feet five with hands that could crush boulders. He had deep blue eyes with shaggy blonde hair and a messy beard. He wore the same grimy overalls as Jason, but they were about six sizes bigger than Jason's. "Are we heading to the bridge? I've been up for hours, man, couldn't sleep."

Jason and Alex had been friends ever since they'd met in high school. Jason was a stupid kid who got himself into fights he knew he couldn't win whereas Alex was quietly confident and rarely spoke up. The two were complete polar opposites but they looked after each other like brothers should. Jason often felt grateful for Alex and his family since they were like a surrogate family for him. Jason's home situation was always messed up while Alex had a near perfect upbringing with loving parents. They'd gone to the same college, joined the army engineers and took similar jobs. They were considered a package deal, both working as a team on their vessels. Alex's aversion to sleep was something he'd had all of his life, but it didn't seem to bother him. It was exacerbated during shockpoint jumps with Alex swearing that travelling at faster than light speeds meant sleep was useless. Regardless, it never affected his ability to work.

Jason nodded. "Yeah, did you see the report?"

Alex smiled grimly. "Downloaded it a few minutes ago. Shit's fucked." He said eloquently.

A soft beeping got Jason's attention as he glanced down at his RIG. "Oh, Jeez, this is the last thing we need now." His RIG had a timer indicating the time left in shockspace and it had finally run down to zero. The crew had begun to wake up with many of them flooding the corridor and heading to the tram station. He had to warn them the deceleration. "Okay people, Senior Engineer Mason here, we're about to decelerate from shockspace. Grab something, hold tight and try not to throw up."

Crew mates rather hesitantly grabbed anything they could, bulkheads, each other or even simply dropped to the ground. Jason himself held onto a nearby handhold while Alex simply braced himself.

A deep electronic male voice announced loudly. "Attention, deceleration from shockspace imminent."

There was a torrential groan of metal as the _Dauntless_ careered out of shockspace. People fell over all throughout the ship as the deceleration forcefully pulled the ship to starboard. Despite his own advice, Jason had been thrown to the ground with Alex trying to hold in his laughter.

"Bro, how many shockpoint jumps have you been in and you still fall down." He said finally giving way to laughter.

"Asshole."

 _Dauntless bridge_

Of the many sections of the _Dauntless_ , the bridge was one of the largest and newest with a fresh paint job. It had large view screens and diamond hard windows to keep bridge personnel appraised with any changes during a voyage. There were console stations littered around the bridge forming a protective semi-circle for the captain's station. In the centre of the bridge, behind the captain's station was an elevator to three floors, the central ADS nest; the captain's nest; and the bridge itself. The bridge was considered the most presentable areas of the ship, often used to convince prospective business owners of the _Dauntless's_ capabilities. Captain James Anders was a tall, proud man with a well-muscled build for his age. He had a full head of blonde but greying hair and black eyes. He wore a form fitting uniform with the Dauntless crest, a pair of silver lightning bolts grasped by a blue hawk, on his chest. Anders was a career sailor having worked first in the navy with the EDF and finally in the private sector with the CEC. Most of his life had been spent aboard ships and he had a strong affinity for the rigours of space travel. Despite first serving in the military, the simplicity of mining had long been something of a second love. The transition from military to civilian life had been a welcome one with he being ready to foster a homely community aboard his ship. But as Captain he had a duty to make sure everyone aboard his ship was happy and content. The last few months had been tough on all the crew and Anders was desperate to remedy their worries. This job seemed like the step in the right direction. He addressed the first officer in a loud baritone voice.

"Mr Porter, report?"

From the nearest console station, a young man of average height with a slender build stood. He had nearly white blonde hair with pale blue eyes. Arnold Porter was a quiet unassuming man but someone who was more than capable of holding his position. He had nearly machine-like focus with laser guided efficiency. He had Captain Anders's implicit support for being completely frank when the need arose. He adjusted his glasses, compiling holographic information from his RIG. "We have successfully decelerated from shockspace. Reports have come in from all decks saying, apart from a few bumps and bruises, the crew is fine. We've arrived around three ahead of schedule despite the initial delay."

Anders nodded, as he regarded the windows, focusing on space outside. He wanted to put off the next part, but he knew he needed to hear it. "And the shockpoint drive?"

Porter's face darkened as he glanced back to his screen for a moment before he spoke. "The reports are still coming in but it's harder to ascertain. The stress fractures already present in the ship's superstructure appeared to have worsened from the long jump and the shockpoint drive itself has overheated. The full 26-hour jump back to Rigel V will irrevocably damage shockpoint drive and may tear the ship in half. I believe seven-hour increments will be better, reducing the effects of the stress fractures."

"Well, then you're a moron." A voice called out.

Anders recognised the voice of his chief engineer, a light smile crossing his face as he glanced in his direction. Jason was striding towards the Captain's station. "Chief Engineer Mason, Second Engineer Denton good to see you."

Alex broke out into a hurried pace to keep up with his friend but quickly raised his hand to get the Captain's attention. "Yo Cap, whatever happens next, I'd like to say I love working on this ship and you're the best captain I've ever had."

"Thanks for the backup, asshat." Jason muttered.

Porter blocked Jason's path. "Mr Mason, you haven't been cleared for the bridge yet. Please submit yourself to the security station." He said.

Jason pushed past the first officer. "Piss off, Markerhead, I don't have time for your bullshit." He said in a harsh tone, showing his distaste for Unitology. Jason wasn't particularly religious himself and he had nothing against those that were but Unitologists were a cult that manipulated idiots and made money off the poor. He had no time for them.

"Mr Mason, calm yourself and deliver your report." Anders said, striking a cool clam tone but letting his disappointment with Mason's continued tone show.

"With all due respect sir, you messed up. That's my report and the ship's report condensed into one." He paused to add weight to his words. "I told you before we left that, in my considerable professional opinion, the shockpoint drive was half dead and this heavy jump would advance that. We've damn near torn the ship in half and don't even get me started on the recharge."

Anders smiled and clasped Jason on the shoulder. "That's why I've got you, son, the best engineer in the universe." He nodded. "Do what you can."

Jason's eyes widened; he was dumbstruck. "James, the shockpoint drive is near death. It will not get us home in one piece. Ask the stuck-up prick over there." He said, pointing at Porter who returned the remark with a sneer.

Porter continued to scowl but sighed defeatedly as he glanced at Anders. "Mason's logic, such as it is, is sound. The shockpoint drive is damaged and the continuous jump has overheated it. However," Anders paused.

"Oh, this'll be good." Mason muttered.

"We know the SCAF used to conduct small time repair jobs on their shockpoint drives by overloading the core. While shockpoint drives have come a long way since then, the principles are still the same. If we can overload the shockpoint drive, and contain the output, we should be able to produce enough power to jump back to Rigel VII."

"A botch job." Mason said as he folded his arms, clearly unenthused with the idea. "You want me to repair the shock point drive with duct tape and glue?"

"Don't be absurd!" Porter said, clearly missing or perhaps ignoring Mason's sarcastic comment. "By cooling the drive first, the overcharge's damage should be prevented. The jump will be rough, but we will survive."

Anders glanced over at Mason and raised an eyebrow. "Is it doable?"

Mason was silent as if in protest, so Alex spoke, first clearing his throat. "If our calcs are on point," he paused and muttered the next part. "And the first officer isn't a nut case, it is possible. The only problem I foresee is the length of the jump. But with Jace's patience and guidance, we should be fine."

Jason finally conceded the point. "It's doable." He grumbled. "We'll have to pull double shifts but as long as it gets us out of here, I'll be happy."

Anders nodded and smiled as he looked forward. "Now I'll fill you in on the mission." He activated the central console and showed a hologram of the remains of Aegis VII. "Aegis VII was scheduled to be Planet cracked a month ago by the famed Ishimura."

"Think Clarke was aboard?" Alex asked Jason in a hushed tone.

Jason shook his head. "Nah, Clarke's back on earth."

Anders continued. "Before leaving, the Ishimura reported Aegis VII to be a goldmine of resources that Earth, and the colonies need. However, after the cataclysmic event a month prior, the planet remains a broken husk of its former self, but our preliminary scans show it's salvageable." He paused, activating his own RIG and adding holographic markers to the diagram. "Our plan is to restart the planet crack using our gravity tethers. We'll pull up a section of the planet and start bringing the resources up. If we get this done, it'll be a heavy pay day, enough to set us all for life. And to fix this old wreck of a ship."

"Captain, permission to speak freely?" Jason asked, rubbing his face wearily.

"Granted."

"Are you out of your damn mind?!" Jason raised his voice enough to catch the attention of the bridge crew. He addressed Porter. "Did you do some voodoo Unitologist bullshit to making him fucking nuts?!"

"I don't do voodoo." Porter said in a flat tone.

Anders' face grew dark. "Watch your tone, Engineer Mason."

Jason persisted. "No, I've been calm but now you've gone off the deep end. Sir, this ship is a standard mining vessel, capable of mining asteroids with relative ease. That's what it's built in mind with. Planet Crackers are literally built to withstand the force of tearing a planet apart. For God's sake, it's in the damned name. The _Dauntless_ has none of that as will literally tear itself apart from holding the weight."

"That's not strictly true." Porter said.

"Oh, here we go." Jason muttered.

"If we divert the necessary power to the tethers then, Altman Willing, we'll be able to support the mass for 15 hours. Meanwhile, the wonderful Mason can prepare the shockpoint drive for the jump back. Two birds, one stone." He said consulting the holographic diagram.

"Two birds one stone my ass." Jason sneered. "It's suicide."

It was at times like this that Alex wished he could bite his tongue, but it was for time for he to play peacemaker. "Look, Captain, with all due respect, this idea is shitty but it's doable." He began glancing at Jason. "If the gravity tether techs can pull double shifts on the coolant banks while we work on the shockpoint drive, then maybe, maybe we can keep the ship afloat and get us all back home safe." He could feel Jason's frown, but he was sure of his own assessment.

"Well Mr Mason, do you agree with Mr Denton's assessment?" Anders asked, glancing at the frowning Jason.

Jason rubbed his face wearily. "This entire thing is stupid beyond belief but its doable." He growled. "I'll inform the engineers."

Anders regained his warm smile and nodded. "Very well, Mr Porter?" He said, glancing back at his first officer. "Call down to gravity tether control and tell them to begin the hoist." He faced Jason and Alex. "Gentlemen, you're dismissed. Godspeed."


	2. Chapter 2

_A/N: Hi! First time talking to you, wonderful reader, (if you don't count the summary which I'm woeful at). This chapter is a little shorter than the last but it's pretty stacked and the next chapter is probably going to be longer. Like I said, uploads will be on Wednesday or a late night Tuesday (GMT time) depending on if I'm free to upload. Anyway, please read, enjoy, leave a review with some feedback. It's much appreciated._

 _Chapter Two_

 _Tram station_

 _Engineering_

Of the various decks on the _Dauntless_ , the engineering deck was the second largest, housing the mining deck and a path to the shockpoint drive. As the name suggested, engineering and mining took care of various hauls such as asteroids comprised of ore or other sources of materials. The _Dauntless_ had a near perfect record of keeping engineers safe with their accident rate being incredibly low. Since Jason's tenure, the rate had dropped even further, proving, despite its appearance, it was nearly the safest place on the ship. It was dirty, grimy and slicked with oil make it a dank, dirty and lethargic place to work. Nevertheless, the engineering crew wouldn't have it any other way. It's veritable cracks and scrapes gave it character and made it feel like a lived-in place, something the bridge and other decks had lost over the years. Nearly every time someone visited the deck, they would complain about the onslaught of deafening sounds, mainly caused by the use of large engineering tools such as the 'force gun' and 'contact beam'. But for some reason, the deck was uncharacteristically quiet something that annoyed Jason. He was still frazzled from his conversation with the Captain and the first officer. Despite disagreeing with the plan, itself, Alex's logic was sound, but he just wanted to err on the side of caution. After all, it was his job to keep his engineers safe, so they could get home. He stroked his chin as the tram finally arrived at its destination. The silence of the normally vocal engineers unnerved both Jason and Alex as they departed.

"What the hell Is this about?" Alex asked, glancing around. "Where is everyone?"

"No godly idea. If they're slacking, I'll kick their asses back to earth." Jason huffed as he strode forward towards the elevator.

He keyed the mining deck and waited impatiently, tapping his foot repeatedly. The elevator doors opened slowly, revealing a large crowd of miners waiting near the mining deck's entrance. There was a low hubbub of shocked gasps and even some sobs.

"What in the ever-loving fuck is going on here? Why the hell aren't you guys readying the equipment for the haul? More importantly, why is no one working on the shockpoint drive?" Jason shouted.

A female finally spoke up, her voice nervous and fearful. "Chief."

Finally, Jason heard it: a panicked yelling, repeating a single phrase.

"Make us whole, make us whole, make us whole, MAKE US WHOLE!" The frenzied shouting was interlaced with a wet splotching sound.

Jason's eyes widened, and his jaw almost dropped as he focused on the scene before him. A supervising engineer, Daniels, was repeatedly stabbing a junior engineer with a plasma saw, hacking at her body. His right hand was bloodied, he'd been clawing at the junior engineer over and over. His eyes were bloodshot and crazed as raised the saw again.

Jason couldn't contain his furore as he stepped forward. "Daniels! What the fuck are you doing?!"

Daniels stood up deliberately but then spun around suddenly, his hands dripping with blood and his eyes twitching wildly. His bottom lip trembled as sweat and tears poured from his face. "Chief, oh thank God, Chief, look," he said drawing Jason's eyes to the bloody site. "It's a fucking monster, must've stowed away before we left. I was doing my rounds and out of fucking nowhere it goes for my throat. But I got it, boss, I put the fucking thing down with the plasma saw." He suddenly grabbed his temples. "Damn, the fucking voices in my head, boss, it hurts. Make us whole, make us whole, it cries." He said as he dropped to his knees and began hacking at the corpse again.

"Daniels, you have ten seconds to put that damned saw down and step away from that body." Jason said, his voice barely above a whisper but filled with rage. "Or I will beat you to death." His words drew audible gasps from the nearby miners who knew Jason to be a friendly boss and rarely angry. Jason could be forthright, but he was kind to all those under him.

Daniels's right eye twitched as he shook his head rapidly in anger and denial. He suddenly seemed to break down, as if his reality was crashing down on him. "Boss, why don't you understand? I, I need to make us whole." He brought the plasma saw up slowly. "I understand now, I need to make us whole."

In a flash he broke out into a full sprint towards Jason. Jason planted his feet and halted his charge, grabbing his saw hand with his right hand and his throat with his left hand. Jason applied some force, but he was surprised at how strong the wiry Daniels was.

"Ah, what the fuck, Daniels?" He yelled. "Don't make me do this."

"MAKE US WHOLE."

Jason's grip was loosening on Daniels's throat and he was slowly being pushed back. He had to make good on his threat. He released Daniels's throat and delivered a full bore left hook, straight into Daniel's jaw, knocking his out cold. As Daniels collapsed the ground he dropped the saw with his jaw being twisted in an unnatural position. Jason's entire body trembled with unbridled rage as he glanced at the junior engineer's body and back at Daniels. He almost gave in to the inclination to beat Daniels to death but knew better. He controlled the trembling and stood up slowly, collecting himself.

Alex took a few steps towards the young engineer's body and the pool of blood, staring at her strangely tranquil face. "Fuck, man. What the hell just happened?"

Jason closed his eyes for a moment, silencing his rage as he turned and faced his crew. "What are you looking at?!" His loud voicing shocking them out of their daze. "Get medical down here, alert security and start the damned drive charge. Go, snap to!"

The crew was silent for a moment and then burst into a flurry of activity, with most reporting to their assigned stations. Some took a moment or so to compose themselves, drying tears and sobering up before calling security. Everyone took a wide berth around the body and the blood, avoiding it as best they could.

Alex pulled Jason to one side, still shocked from the event. "What the hell just happened? Daniels is one of the most rock-solid engineers we've ever had. He's never laid a finger or said anything to anyone. He's never shown signs of," he glanced back at the grisly site, exhaling forcefully. "Something like this."

Jason's angry frown could burn a hole through the hull as he stared at the now cold body. "How long were we army engineers Alex?"

Alex shook his head. "Shit, I can't remember. What was it, four, five years. Yeah, five years."

Jason nodded, still staring at the site. "We never saw shit like this or if we did, we just moved on." He finally blinked. "Frankly, I'm a little freaked out but we need to get this shit cleaned up and start the job. Otherwise, we're never getting out of here."

It took only a few minutes, but the body was cleared by incoming medical staff who also began cleaning the blood. A few minutes after that, Chief Alan Brandt from security arrived by himself, armed and slightly confused at the call. Brandt was a tall man, near to Alex's height, with a wide build and a bald head. He had a tidy beard with a sharp nose and dark green eyes. Before serving on the _Dauntless_ , Brandt had served as a marine before finally giving it up for a simpler job as a security officer. He carried a standard issue Divet pistol and wore a black uniform. He lazily scratched his head, a signature trait which many mistook for confusion. He often did it to put people off because his own deductive skills were rather advanced. He consulted his Rig, considering the situation.

Brandt spoke deliberately but methodically. "So, you have this guy, Daniels, who suddenly attacked a," he glanced back at his RIG. "Emily Benton, with a plasma saw, mistaking her for a monster, hacking at her body while screaming 'make us whole'?"

Jason's nodded slowly, almost as if he was hollow. "Yeah."

Brandt raised an eyebrow, shook his head and exhaled slowly. "Look, guys, I've been security chief for almost 12 years now and the worst thing I've seen was a mass brawl that ended with a few black eyes and some broken bones. But this is something I expect to see on a battlefield not on this ship." He paused briefly. "Tell me, what was Daniels like?"

Jason rubbed his face, then ran his right hand through his hair. "I don't know, Brandt, he was a nice guy, quiet but wicked smart and funny. He was one of the best system engineers I've ever seen. And he wasn't a loner or anything, he had plenty of friends on board and always described this posting as his favourite. I've never had a single complaint about or even any instance where he's put a foot wrong. For him to do something this insane," Jason paused as he shook his head, lost for words. "I really don't know, Alan. Maybe something happened on the way here, something got into his head."

"What like a virus?" Alan said with an almost imperceptible smirk.

"No, man. Did you see those vids that were smuggled off Aegis VII before planet crack?"

Brandt shook his head. "No, but from what I heard it was pretty brutal. Supposedly the terrorists were able to crash the Ishimura and destroy the planet."

"Yeah well there were no terrorists on this vid. People were going hysterical down there, doing some pretty horrific stuff. Maybe there was something on the planet, something they missed." Jason trailed off as he stopped talking.

Brandt pursed his lips as he glanced down at the crime scene. He scratched his chin again. "Look, as far as I can see, there appears to be no premeditation or any intent for this. As bad as this sounds, it appears to be a fluke. When we get back to Rigel VII, Daniels can appeal for temporary insanity or maybe even full-blown insanity."

Jason raised an eyebrow. "You planning to question him?"

Brandt gave a lazy nod. "I am but at the moment he's being kept in isolation in med bay." He paused. "Look, if you get there first you can have a crack at him. You'll probably get more out him that I could."

Jason didn't particularly want to talk to Daniels, but he did need to find out what exactly happened. At least for the dead girl's family and their peace of mind. Even for his own; before the _Dauntless_ acquired its latest job, Emily Benton's parents hand inquired to speak with him. They were worried about their youngest daughter serving aboard an aging vessel. Jason had assured them both that he'd work with her closely, showing her around the deck and letting her shadow him. She'd worked aboard the vessel for close to two months and Jason was surprised at what an efficient worker she was. She didn't really need his guidance and at some points proved to match his own knowledge. He was exceedingly proud of her and was sure she had a bright future about. Now, she was lying in the morgue, cold and lifeless. Jason hadn't mentioned it to Brandt, but he was terrified that this was somehow his fault. Had he missed something? Was Daniels a ticking time bomb waiting to go off? He shook off the questions and finally answered Brandt's question.

"Just, give me a few minutes and I'll get to it. Right now, I need to inform the Captain of the death." Brandt nodded, moving to interview a few other witnesses. Jason raised his right arm, consulted his RIG and sent a direct line to the Captain. "Captain, it's Mason, I," He stuttered. "There's been an incident."


	3. Chapter 3

_(A/N) I'm back and things are getting spooooky... okay, I promise never to do that again. Ahem, a bit early with this upload but it looks like I won't have too much time on Wednesday. I think this chapter is a little shorter than the previous but after this things will be getting a bit longer. Enjoy. Oh and please review._

 _Chapter Three_

 _Dauntless bridge_

Anders' throat went dry as he received the report from engineering. He swallowed a few times, forcing himself to remain composed and calm. Daniels had been Captain of the _Dauntless_ for 24 years and had never had a death on his watch. Injuries yes, but never a death, never the loss of one of his crew. He rubbed his eyes wearily as he considered the aftermath of the event. He'd have to write a letter to the girl's family, give them a full report and inform the CEC. He stared at the broken husk of Aegis VII, focusing on the crack and splinters within the planet's crust. It almost felt as if the report had cracked the _Dauntless_ itself. He noticed many of the bridge crew had overheard the call, Mason had no inside voice, and it truly showed how it affected them. Some looked distraught while others were completely shocked, having had to step away from their stations to compose themselves. The _Dauntless_ ' crew was very much a family, rarely falling out with each other and welcoming all who would serve aboard her. To see someone so young, so innocent, die in such a brutal manner would destroy the morale and weaken their resolve. Anders steeled himself as he cocked his head to left and relieved the tension in his shoulders.

He cleared his throat as he prepared to address the bridge crew. "As you may have heard, a junior engineer was killed moments ago. I know that at the moment we're all too stunned to do anything. I know we all just want to grieve, to mourn the loss. But I ask you to remain focused on the tasks ahead. First, we must inform Rigel VII and report the crime. Then we need to coordinate with gravity tether control and begin the hoist. I urge you all to stay calm and see the mission through. We have a job to do, Ladies and Gentlemen, let's see that it's done."

The crew nodded with some sobering quickly and getting to work. Anders could only smile sadly with pride; his crew were truly better than anything he could have asked for. They knew Anders himself knew what it was like to lose someone close and how easy it was to completely shut down. It was at times like this that true character showed, and Anders was proud his crew could grieve and move on. He focused up, glanced over to Porter and signalled him over. "Mr Porter, any luck on communications?"

Porter consulted his RIG. "I've had our communications officers working on it but we're still coming up short. As soon as we have a signal, I'll contact Rigel VII myself."

Anders nodded. "Any preliminary information from gravity tether control?"

"Despite some concern, gravity tethers one through to sixteen are working at optimal capability. We're as prepared as we can be for the operation."

"Good. I want you down there as soon as possible to oversee the deployment."

Anders imperceptibly frowned. "Yes sir," a sudden chime from his RIG broke the silence. He glanced down, and his eye widened slightly. "Sir, may I be excused?" Anders nodded, and Porter glided towards the exit.

He looked around a few times, making sure he was alone and brought his right wrist up, speaking in a hushed tone. "Vested operative Porter reporting?"

The voice broadcasting from the RIG was disguised but noticeably female and rather deep. "Is your insertion complete?"

"Insertion is complete, one hours past de-shock. I've begun my scan for fragments of The Maker. I believe I have located a shard and it's directly embedded into the payload we are searching for. If the Eckhardt report is accurate, I'll be able to directly report the effects on the ship and its populace." Porter reported.

The voice responded. "Understood. Keep us updated and send information. Altman be praised."

The audio link closed, and Porter glanced upwards, whispering. "Altman be praised."

 _Tram Station, Crew Deck_

Chief Alan Brandt waited a moment for the main passengers to depart from the tram carriage before exiting himself. He scratched his bald head as he made his way into the nearby REC room, which at the current time was quiet aside for a few workers on break. The crew deck was the third largest deck aboard the _Dauntless_ , home to the majority of the crew with some living in smaller crew quarters on different decks. Apart from the crew quarters, the crew deck also housed the security office and holding cells, the mess hall and REC rooms for the crew to unwind. Brandt himself had a simple cabin just a few meters from the security office which was his own choice. The short commute to his office was ideal and it didn't hurt that he could get fresh coffee from the mess hall. The REC rooms were the undisputed area of the ship that everyone went to, to unwind and relax after a long day at work. It had a full Z-ball court, a vid theatre, and even a virtual reality games zone. Adjacent to it was the mess hall, a full eating area with a coffee store and eatery for the crew. Brandt considered lighting up his synthetic cigarette but remembered the Captain had deemed it unfair to younger crew members. He growled slightly as he increased his speed to the coffee shop. If he couldn't light up, a strong black coffee would alleviate his slight frustration and aggravation. As he neared the coffee shop, he was surprised to find it was empty with only the cantankerous owner, Merle, working. Merle, an aging man in his late sixties with a stout build and wispy white hair, glanced up and gave sarcastic salute to Brandt.

"Here he is, ladies and gentlemen," Merle announced to no one in particular. "The protector of the _Dauntless_ herself, Chief Alan Brandt." He stepped from the counter and shook Brandt's hands vigorously. "How ya doing, ya cynical bastard?"

"Not bad, you old tub of lard." Brandt responded. "Got any fresh coffee?"

Merle nodded as he lumbered back to the counter. "Brewed a fresh pot a few moments ago. Still hot."

Brandt could smell the roasted beans from where he was. He accepted the hot cup and took a long drink. He exhaled slowly as he shook his head. "Damn, if you'd have seen the shit I just saw, you'd get the hell out of dodge."

"Oh yeah?" Merle said. "Words a spreading. Some crazy miner hacked a young girl up to pieces." Merle shook his head. "Damn shame."

Brandt took another drink. "Not that simple, Merle." He placed him coffee down on the counter and sighed. "Guy was rock solid according to the chief."

Merle made himself look busy, overseeing more pots of coffee and preparing some fresh pastries. "Chief would know. Still, how often you heard about someone flipping out due to the rigours of deep space?"

Brandt nodded slowly. "Yeah but there are normally warning signs. Besides, the shrinks in the medical bay set up special mental health days for stuff like that." Brandt scratched his head. "I don't know, Merle, there's something fishy about this whole situation."

"You're telling me?" Merle said with a slight frown. "I had a bridge staff officer chew me out this morning over something as silly as a damp napkin."

Normally, Brandt would crack a snarky response, but something piqued his curiosity. "What did they say?"

Merle gave a dismissive head shake. "It wasn't anything horrible it was just the manner of how he said it. Kid's a nice enough guy but it's almost like he just went berserk over something silly."

"How long ago was this?"

Merle shrugged. "About an hour ago."

 _Just about the same time Daniels killed Benton._ "Interesting."

"You think they might be connected?" Merle asked.

Brandt thought hard but decided to dismiss the event as circumstantial. "It's probably nothing."

Merle shrugged and walked away to serve another customer while he left Brandt to ponder of his coffee. He continued to frown thoughtfully as he looked over at a group of children playing in a small play area. Normally it would be innocuous but something they were singing turned his flood to ice.

 _"Make us whole, make us whole, we have to make it whole."_


	4. Chapter 4

_(A/N) Welcome back to another installment. As promised this chapter is a little longer than the last and a little more informative. Uploading on Tuesday again because I won't be free to upload on Wednesday. Enjoy!_

 _Chapter Four_

 _Medical deck_

The medical deck was arguably the cleanest part of the _Dauntless_ free from dirt and grime. Though it wasn't surprising in the least; medical staff were obliged to keep the area clean to perform their duties at the best of their abilities. The medical staff were generally cleanliness freaks, throwing a fit whenever anyone tracked dirt through the deck. It often meant a protocol of attempting to hose down any one from the engineering deck. Though the bridge was the newest area of the _Dauntless,_ the medical deck was pristine with chrome and white areas. In terms of size, it was rather spacious, encompassing operating theatres, wards and even a zero g therapy room. Floating holograms would often be produced for doctors and nurses to consult when performing procedures. Jason had been to the medical deck a few times, mainly for stupid injuries he picked up away from the engineering deck. He always found it ironic that he broke his leg on his break in the rec room and later dislocating his shoulder by falling down a set of steps. His recovery was thankfully brief, but it still required some time in the zero g therapy rooms. Jason was always disconcerted at the absence of gravity, something he found strange since he served aboard ships with artificial gravity. He could always tell when the gravity was fake, as if there was some completely noticeable difference to the normal gravity of a planet. Currently, the medical deck was quiet with most of the nurses and doctors being in preparation mode in case of any injuries or accidents. Part of Kate Mera's job was to prepare her staff for emergencies so they could respond in minutes. So far, her training had been needed with the recent murder with the medical staff responding within minutes. She was proud of her staff but horrified at the reason they were needed. Daniels was now being held in the hastily quarantined war at the rear of the medical deck. It was mostly used for cases of viral infections that could spread through the crew but surprisingly it was rare. From her initial scans, Daniels didn't seem to be contaminated but he was still a frenzied nutjob that hacked apart a woman. Quarantine seemed the safest place for he and the crew. She glanced over at Jason who was leaning against a wall, with his arms folded. His thunderous gaze hadn't left Daniels since he'd arrived, in fact, he'd barely said a word. Daniels had been brought up on a gurney and had to be strapped down but even so, he continued to writhe in agony as if being tortured by unknown forces.

Kate walked over towards Jason and whispered into his ear. "I've never seen anything like this before. I've given him enough sedatives to knock out twenty men yet here he is, still awake. It's impossible."

Jason spoke, his eyes still focused on Daniels and his voice barely above a whisper. "Yeah, we'll I would've said what he did would be impossible." He gave a nonchalant shrug. "Guess we need to revaluate our barometer for weirdness."

"Maybe so but conventional medical science- "

"Medical science be damned, Kate, you didn't see what he did." Jason said finally raising his voice and cutting her off. He noticed her shocked expression and quickly softened. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cut you off."

Kate shook her head. "No, it's okay. I know you're stressed."

Jason rubbed his face wearily as he slumped against the wall. "I need answers, Kate, I need to know I didn't miss something and condemn a poor girl to her death."

Kate nodded. "I don't know what you'll get from him, his ramblings have been mostly incomprehensible. Something about wanting to be made whole and listening to the marker."

Jason's ears pricked at mention of the marker. "Daniels wasn't a unitologist, what's he know about the maker?"

Kate shook her head and said nothing. Jason continued to frown as he returned his gaze to Daniels. Though he hated to admit it, he was afraid, of what he didn't know but he was very afraid. There could be something out of his control that was threatening to hurt his engineers, his family. It sobered his thought processes but ultimately scared him.

He glanced over Kate. "You don't have to be here if you don't want to?"

As if noticing his fear, Kate took his hand and shook her head. "I'll stay with you. I need to hear this as much as you do."

Jason squeezed her hand and touched his forehead against hers. After a moment of silence, he approached the still writhing Daniels. "Daniels?" Daniels! Can you hear me, buddy?"

Daniels' head violently jerked to focus on Jason, his eyes crazed and twitching. "Chief, oh god, Chief, is that you?"

Jason nodded, trying his best to remain affable. "It's me buddy." He paused. "Look, I know you're stressed right now but I need to know, do you remember what you did?"

Daniels strained inaudibly. "I, I remember boss." He licked his lips. "I killed a monster. I tried to call for you, but they said you were busy. So, I took my saw and killed it. I stopped it from getting out." He said flatly.

Jason's eyes widened slightly but he took a deep breath relaxing himself. "Daniels, you killed a 22-year-old junior engineer. Her name was Emily Benton and she had a bright wonderful future ahead of her." He paused briefly, steeling himself. "She was a kid, Daniels and you killed her. The Captain has to write her parents a letter, I have to speak to them. When we get home, you're going to prison for a long time."

Daniels suddenly shrieked in terror, furiously shaking his head almost breaking his own neck as he pulled against the restraints. "FUCK YOU, Chief. All my life, I never hurt anyone and the one time I listen to my instincts to protect myself, my ship, I get persecuted for it! That fucking thing was going to that girl, the one you should have been watching. I saved her, I put my own life on the line. I should be given a fucking medal."

Jason lost it as he almost lunged for Daniels. He stopped himself and slammed his fist against the wall. "Fuck you, Daniels. I saw what you did, I saw what was left of Emily. You killed her for no damn reason." He shouted.

"NO! I saved us." He shouted back. "You, fuck, you have no damn idea what's coming, Chief." He sobbed. "Fuck, we're not getting out of here alive."

Jason suddenly calmed down and noticed Daniels was almost being sincere. "Daniels, what is coming?" Daniels was suddenly quiet. "Please, Daniels, if you meant to save us then give me that chance."

Daniels finally focused on Jason, tears beginning to fall from his eyes. "The voices Chief, you don't hear them?" Jason shook his head to which Daniels ruefully cried. "The fucking voices in my head keeping telling me what happens next, boss. We're all going to die, death is the only way forward." He jerked against the restraints. "WE NEED TO DIE!"

Daniels suddenly began to hyperventilate as his EKG shot through the roof. He jerked against his restraints so much so that he started bleeding from his wrists and legs. Kate pulled a small cart near to Daniels and grabbed a sedative. She injected him, but the sedative had no effect as Daniels began shaking violently. Kate's eyes darted from left to right rapidly as she considered her options. She needed to calm Daniels down before he killed himself. She looked back at Jason with an imploring look.

"Please, Jason, knock him out. It's the only way."

Jason moved to strike Daniels, but his convulsions suddenly got worse and he thrashed against his restraints. His eyes suddenly rolled up inside his head as Kate desperately tried to control him, but it was no use. His EKG suddenly flatlined and Daniels went limp. Kate started compressions while the defibrillator charged but it was too late. Daniels lay dead on the gurney with an almost serene expression on his face. Kate stepped back and slumped against the wall, her mouth open in shock.

"Shit, he's dead." She gasped softly. "His vitals were a little sporadic, but he was stable." She wiped a few tears away. "I've never lost a patient before."

Jason rested his hands on her shoulders and pulled her close. "You okay?"

She nodded as she rubbed her forehead. "I'll be okay. I mean they train you for it in med school and you do expect it, but I've just never seen it before. Something out of the blue like that." She shook her head. "I was surprised he could speak through that broken jaw. The pain must've been immense."

Jason rubbed his face wearily as he leant against the wall. "Guy was convinced he could save the ship by killing a kid." He shook his head. "His file show any history of mental health issues?"

Consulting her RIG, Kate read through Daniels' file carefully. "No, other than a few minor problems with his leg, he's never been in a hospital for more than an hour. This was out of the blue."

Jason sighed heavily. "Was it?" Kate gave a confusing frown as her boyfriend eyed her uneasily. "Was this something I couldn't predict?"

Kate took his hand and squeezed it softly. "Jason, you couldn't see this coming, none of us could."

Jason nodded solemnly as he focused for a minute. His RIG suddenly beeped, alerting him to a vid call. "What?!" He answered indignantly.

Alex's face popped up on the RIG's vid link. "Boss, we've started the botch job on the shockpoint drive and, well it's a piece of shit but we're getting there. Can't seem to keep the temp down though. We should be able to accelerate into shockspace but sustaining it for the 26 hours we'll be difficult. And from our preliminary scans, the deceleration might shake the ship to pieces. Nothing we can do about that."

Jason silently cursed a storm as he cursed Porter, shockpoint drives and the _Dauntless_ herself. "Any other good news?"

Alex smirked but it wasn't smug, in fact it was almost a full smile. "Gravity tether control is reporting initial scans. The yield is good, no, it's brilliant. We've hit the mother load."

Jason rolled his eyes. "Yeah, we'll see. I'll be down in a bit." He closed down the vid and glanced at Kate. "Hey, Kate, be careful, okay?

Kate smiled and gave a slight laugh. "Don't worry, babe, I'll be okay. Go and make sure we can get home."

Jason nodded and made his way to tram station.

 _Gravity tether control_

Situated in the very bowels of the ship, gravity tether control housed all sixteen of the gravity tethers housed in the _Dauntless._ Unlike a planet cracker, the Hephaestus class engineering vessel folded their tethers away during shockpoint jumps and on long sub light trips. The semi-circle under the _Dauntless_ opened when the gravity tethers were activated. Due to the _Dauntless'_ age and lack of upgrade, the gravity tethers were old and irritable. They could do the job but needed constant time and attention, especially when watching over the coolant banks. Arnold Porter glanced from console to console, watching technicians maintain the load's altitude.

"Sir." One of them, a young man with brown hair and black eyes said. "Hold is stable."

Porter nodded. "Good." He addressed another technician. "How are the coolant banks holding up?"

The technician, a middle-aged woman with dyed blue hair and blue eyes reported. "Coolant banks one through ten are in the green but eleven through sixteen are entering unstable levels."

"Can we hold the load with ten tethers?" Porter asked.

There was a brief conversation between the technicians with the elder of the two arguing against, citing different examples of it not working. The younger technician began to get angry, raising his voice before suddenly shouting.

"Dammit, Vera, why do you always do this?"

Vera looked shocked. "Conner?"

"Every time I have an idea you shut me down. Well no more, fuck, no more." He stood up and lashed out with a thunderous blow to her temple. "You feel that? I'll rip you apart if you ever do it again."

Vera was disorientated and clearly reeling from the blow, but she brought her arms up to defend herself. Conner rained down punch after punch, beginning to draw blood. Porter was amused, a small smirk spreading across his face. He'd have to get involved but still, it was remarkable to see holy artefact's effects from so far away. He rushed forward and restrained Conner, pulling him off the now knocked out Vera.

"That's quite enough of that." Porter hissed as he dragged Conner away. After Conner stopped squirming, he suddenly began crying. "What are you crying about?"

"I, I, just wanted her to stop." He said between sobs. "The voices said she needed to step off and I made her." He looked up at Porter. "You're devout, aren't you?"

Porter raised an eyebrow. "Yes, why?"

"I heard the holy Marker, sir, I heard it whispering in my mind. I can almost feel it." His face took on a pleading expression. "Are the rumours true? Did they find a Marker on the planet below?"

Porter suddenly forced Conner against the bulkhead and choked him. "You will speak nothing of this." He hissed, his voice full of malice. With a single blow he knocked Conner out and let him slump to the ground.

He sighed heavily as he looked at the pair of now knocked out technicians. There were two others that could fill their place bit it was bothersome. Porter wanted scold the young Conner with being so easily take up. He'd started hearing the voices when he arrived in gravity tether control. At first, he instantly dismissed them but then they started whispering the truths of the church to him. While he believed the Eckhardt report, he was skeptical of its source. Warren Eckhardt was a sniveling bastard that always vied for new positions within the church without showing his worth. But this report as cemented he as a martyr, one who paved the way to greatness. Porter almost spat as he considered that Eckhardt could be held up with Altman himself. He dismissed his thoughts and keyed up a RIG link to the medical deck.

"This is the first officer, I need medical officers to gravity tether control ASAP. There's been an unfortunate accident." He didn't wait for them to arrive, he simply departed back to the bridge and continued with his work.


	5. Chapter 5

_(A/N) - A Wednesday upload? What? How could that be? Well for the first time in ages I have time to upload today. Yay. So chapter five, half way through. I'm really touched by all the readers I've had for this one. It's really appreciated, so thank you all for that. I hope that doesn't come across as sarcastic, I mean this with all sincerity. I hope you enjoy this chapter, it's a little more action packed than the previous one but hopefully it goes well. Enjoy!_

 _Chapter Five_

 _Mining sub deck_

The mining sub deck was awash with activity as miners sprinted across the deck, adjusting from the incoming load. Like a planet cracker, the engineering deck was split into sub decks, however, unlike a planet cracker, there were no cargo towers. Ore was broken down in the mining deck and processed in the same place. A wide cavernous almost mausoleum like structure, there was an overview platform, sealed with plate glass windows, which led into a 'zero g' environment that enabled the feeding of broken down ore. The 'zero g' environment then lead into a vacuum with carefully placed shields to protect the crew working in zero g. Outside, large chunks of asteroid or planet were held in place by gravity tethers with _Dauntless_ engineers and surveyors working on the load before feeding it back. This often called for extravehicular activity using RIGs that could sustain long periods of time in space. Currently ore was being broken down into pieces and processed which was taking time. The _Dauntless'_ aging equipment made things a little difficult to refine the ore. However, the steady work was progressing well, and the entire engineering deck was busy. Jason directed most of his attention to the miner he had working on extravehicular activity.

"That's it, Mark, keep feeding the scans through." He said while reading the information coming through. He had to admit, Alex was right; initial reports from the load described mounds of silicon, osmium and cobalt. CEC would pay an incredible price for even a tenth of what they could collect. He switched back to Mark's feed. "How's things going out there, Mark?"

" _Ah, you know, view's a little boring but I got fresh oxygen and these new thrusters. I'll be fine."_

"Good to hear." Jason replied with a genuine smile.

After the comparative chaos, the last hour or so had been quiet and relaxed. He'd had a chance to speak to most of his engineers and found that, while they were upset, they were coping well. They were also fixated on getting home and making sure Emily didn't die for nothing. Some had asked about Daniels and his supposed mental break, but Jason had spared them news of his death. While his actions were brutal and unforgivable, may of the crew had fond of memories of the quiet man. Jason found it hard to reconcile his anger and sadness at the loss of two of his engineers both for different reasons. Regardless of that, it was time for he to shut it down and focus. The hall was coming in nicely, but he was getting some strange feedback.

"Mark, getting a few readings I'm not happy about." He said. "Anything on your end?"

" _Uh, the loads pulling on the ship a little too harshly. I think the tethers are waning."_

 _Shit_ Jason thought as he ran some simulations. "Right, I think we've got a few hours at the most before we have to detach."

" _Uh, yeah boss, whatever needs to happen."_

Jason noticed Mark sounded distracted, as if something was concerning him. "Mark, you okay, buddy?"

There was a beat before Mark began speaking. " _I'm getting some weird feedback on my comm systems. Like someone's singing a lullaby."_

Jason check his own comm system and keyed some data about Mark's own system. "Mark, I'm getting nothing over mine and I've checked yours. There's no interference from any other deck coming through."

" _Well, I can hear something and it's freaking me out."_

"Mark, I need you to calm down. Just orientate yourself to the ship and level yourself out." Jason replied in the most soothing tone he could manage.

" _Roger boss, orienting myself back to ship. How much longer do I have to be out here for?"_

"Couple of minutes at the most, Mark, stay strong." Jason had a hunch and quickly checked Mark's suit's telemetry. His vitals, specifically his heart rate was suddenly heightened. While it was normal for some anxiety during space walks, Mark was notoriously calm, often performing extremely well during EVA. "Mark, I'm getting some feedback from your suit. I need you to calm down and take a breath." Mark suddenly screamed over the comm startling Jason and a few miners around him. "Mark?! Mark! Talk to me buddy."

" _BOSS, fuck, I just, I need to get my helmet off, I can't breathe."_

Jason quickly activated his engineering RIG and sealed his helmet. "Mark, listen to me, do not take your damn helmet off. Talk me through it, what are you seeing?" He said while sprinting towards the nearby zero g environment.

" _Just saw a fucking flying skull. Hit me right in my chest and now I can't breathe. Ah, fuck, boss, I need to get the helmet off."_

"Dammit, Mark don't do anything, I'm coming." Mark's RIG had a special safety featuring that locked the helmet when in the presence of a vacuum. It was considerably more advanced than Jason's own, with new thrusters that enabled easy movement in zero g environments. Since Jason didn't have that, he'd have to rely on something a little more dangerous. "Matthews, throw me that damned gas canister." Mathews replied by throwing the canister which Jason caught and kept as he sprinted forward. He could hear Mark struggling with his helmet and almost sobbing. "Hold on, buddy, I'm coming." He muttered.

As he entered the zero g environment, he deactivated his magnetic boots and leapt towards the vacuum. He used his kinesis module to grab a piece of the hull and slingshot himself towards Mark. Spying Mark drifting towards the hull, his hands desperately trying to force his helmet off, he reached out to Mark as he hurtled towards him. He crashed into him, almost losing his grip but held tight. He looked back and quickly made sure his angle back into the ship was correct. This was a bad idea, Jason knew, but short of getting another suit, this was the only thing he could do. He held Mark with his right hand around his waist and the gas cannister in his left. He fired a single burst of pressurised gas that sent them rocketing towards the ship. Jason desperately tried to keep his eyes on the deck, carefully using small bursts of gas to keep himself and Mark on target. As they entered the deck, gravity sent the pair hurtling towards the deck. Jason hoped his suit's shock absorbers were still working as he crashed into the ground. Mark landed on top of him which didn't help matters; he coughed slightly his RIG feeding him telemetry that all he was feeling was pain with no actual damage. He gently pushed Mark up as a crowd formed around the pair. Matthews arrived, helping Jason up who quickly brushed his concerns off.

"I'm fine." He said as he stood. "Someone stop the work and shut the blast shields."

His command was heard as an engineer quickly closed the blast shields, giving the vacuum shields time to recharge. He gently pulled Mark up and deactivated his helmet. Jason was taken aback at the sight; Mark, a normally stoic man, quivered like a child, sobbing as if inconsolable. His hands shook as he held them in front of his eyes, almost trying to blind himself.

"B-boss?" He said as he looked up at Jason. "P-please don't make me go out there again, I'm begging you, boss."

Jason pulled him up slowly. "You're not going anywhere, Mark, you can stay in the ship."

"I, I don't want to go, boss, I don't want to be alone." He said, his voice barely above a whisper.

Jason pulled him into a brotherly hug. "You're going to be fine, kid, I'll make sure of that." He let a few other miners take him away and quickly keyed the medical deck. "Kate?"

" _Yeah, Jason, what's up?"_

"Can you send the shrink down? I've just a miner have a break down and he's a blubbering mess." Jason said, his voice almost hollow.

" _I'll send Doctor Carter down, she'll look after him."_ She paused. " _Jason is everything okay?"_

Jason sobered up. "Can't get any worse." He said before heading to the shockpoint drive to oversee the recharge.

 _Crew deck_

Alan Brandt hadn't moved in half an hour, instead opting to sit in the REC room, nursing his third cup of coffee. He kept running over the crime scene over and over in his mind, factoring in what the chief had told him. Then he added what the children were singing while they were playing. He'd tried to convince himself it was simple coincidence, but it seemed too close to home to be random. He grunted wearily as he stood, took his coffee and left the REC room behind. He continued his small tour of the crew deck, wanting to distance himself from the security office before returning. His tour took him past a few open ship-based restaurants which offered variety besides the standard mess. Brandt had been to all of them but after a while routine had settled in and he attended the mess like everyone else. It gave him a chance to observe the crew he was protecting and to find any potential trouble makers. But now, the area seemed overly quiet. Though it was perfectly normal, since most of the crew worked in different areas of the ship. But still there were normally a few crew members around either minding their children or just taking a break.

"Marion, for god's sake, just calm down and step away from the airlock."

Brandt recognised the panicked voice and he broke out into a hurried walk. He rounded a corner and followed the sound of distressed voices till he found a horrifying scene. A panicked woman in her early thirties with two children, an infant and a four-year-old, was hugging an airlock while a Merle was trying to keep her calm. Brandt tried to keep his approach quiet, but the woman caught sight of him and proceeded to point in his direction.

"NO! Not you, not you, not this. I know what you're all doing, you all want me to go insane. I'm getting off this ship." Marion screamed.

Merle glanced back and held up his hand for Brandt to slow down. "Marion, I swear to god, we're not doing anything." He pointed at her children. "You're scaring the kids, Marion." He took one step forward. "Come back with me to the shop and we'll have some coffee."

Marion's eyes were startlingly bloodshot and frenzied as she shook her head. "No! You're just trying to take them away from me." She clutched the infant tighter and pulled her four-year-old back. "I know you've been watching me, I know the Captain has secret tapes of us all. I need to get them off the ship."

Brandt took another step forward, holding his right hand with his RIG interface behind his back and his left hand up. "Marion, is it? I'm Chief Brandt, I don't think we've properly met." He paused, summoning all of his collective knowledge about negotiation which was admittedly lacking. "You know that I and the other officers do everything we can to protect you, right?"

Marion shook her head. "No! They told me, they told me that you're just waiting to kill us all."

Brandt suppressed a smirk. "Marion, whoever is spreading this rumour is doing it to upset you. I'm not going to hurt anyone, it's my job to protect you."

She let go of her four-year-old, pushing the boy behind her leg and suddenly grabbed her head, digging her nails into her scalp, drawing blood. "The voices," her voice quivered. "They promised not to lie to me. They said I'd be safe, that my children would be safe."

Brandt took another step forward, still holing his right hand behind his back. "Marion, please, just step away from the airlock and we'll talk."

She looked up her, tears now clouding her eyes while her bottom lip quivered. "I can't." She said sadly. "I need to make us whole." She pivoted and activated the airlock but thankfully nothing happened. She hit again but there was still no response. She furiously looked back at Brandt. "What have you done?!"

Brandt had successfully overridden the airlock and locked it down. He was afraid it wouldn't work since he rarely updated his own RIG interface but by some form of providence it had worked. Brandt continued his march forward. "Marion, you can't access the airlock. And even if you did, you'll kill yourself and your children. You don't want that."

Marion's was furious, almost seething with rage. "You've damned us, you've damned us all."

Brandt smiled grimly. "Maybe, but I can't let you make you this decision."

"NO!" She lunged at Brandt, child in hand and reaching for his side arm.

Brandt stepped back, letting her lunge past him and quickly grabbed the infant from her grasp. He passed the baby to Merle before restraining Marion and cuffing her in a single move. "Marion, I'm not arresting you, but I need to get you out of here and calmed down." He held the struggling Marion while glancing at Merle. "Where's the kids' father?"

Merle was shushing the baby and doing his best to calm her down. "He works on the flight deck as a shuttle technician."

Brandt cursed silently. "Can you look after the kids while I take her to the station?"

"What'd I look like, a fucking nursery?" Merle said with a scowl. He quickly shook it off. "They'll be fine."

Brandt nodded as he marched Marion to the nearby security station. He was slightly perturbed at the events, finding Marion's psychotic break to have been terrifying. She was ready to airlock herself and her own children all because she heard voices telling her to do so. It scared Brandt more than anything he'd ever seen as a marine. He needed to understand what was happening and how it was affecting the ship. Otherwise, he was afraid he'd lose everyone he was supposed to protect.


	6. Chapter 6

_(A/N) Yikes, I can't believe I almost forgot! Many apologies my friends, a scatter brain I am a glance, this chapter might be a little shorter but we are down to the last four chapters. Things are coming to a head. I hope you've enjoyed everything so far and if you have, please leave a review. Enjoy!_

 _Chapter Six_

 _Bridge_

Arnold Porter watched over a section of bridge staff assessing the haul, almost like a predatory bird. He'd returned to the bridge after a few orderlies from the medical deck had seen to the gravity tether technicians. Curiously, he was almost disturbed by the sudden melee even though he should have expected it. Perhaps it was the sudden nature of the event but still, he didn't like feeling this off. He'd tried to shake it off, but he was still assessing his own emotional state. He closed his eyes for a moment and slowed his breathing before an audible chime from his RIG alerted him. He focused on his RIG interface and his subtlety widened; two fragments had been found. He suppressed his smile and walked away from the bridge staff, returning to the Captain's station.

"Captain, I've received a message from the engineering deck. It seems they wish to address an issue with me before reporting to you. Am I free to leave?" The lie was a little choppy and Porter would have to feed something back later, but it should work.

The Captain glanced over and raised his eyebrow. "Fine but see that you return as quickly as possible."

Porter nodded and broke out into a brisk walk towards the tram station. Thankfully, the tram was waiting and completely deserted. He stepped in and keyed the location as he began to review his objectives. Originally, his mission was simply to confirm the Eckhardt report by reporting the existence of the divine relic. However, after the events aboard the Ishimura, something only the church new of, his mission had been redefined to acquire fragments of the relic and return them to the church. He knew the mission would be difficult due to the quick effect the relic had on the mind. He prayed Altman would guide him in his journey though he was secretly disappointed. The Eckhardt report described the ascent as beautiful, the act of becoming one with god. Sadly, he'd have to wait a little longer before he got his chance. It was even worse that the unbelievers aboard the godforsaken ship could experience the call. Fortunately, their feeble minds would simply crack from the holy relic's words. A chime alerted Porter that the tram had arrived at the engineering deck as it came to a stuttering stop. Porter tutted at the aging ship's numerous faults as he forced the tram's doors apart. He consulted his RIG for the time and then broke into a hurried walk through the deck. He seemed to glide through the deck like a phantasm, avoiding miners and keeping himself unseen. Luckily most of the deck crew were busy working in the lower decks. Porter was able to take the elevator down to processing without being spotted once. Slipping into the processing deck, Porter continued to avoid miners before his RIG gave a soft chime. He'd contacted a loyal miner to hold the two specific fragments and keep them locked away in a side room. He broke out into a sprint and came across a locked room, one that was giving off a signal. Porter overrode the door lock but as the door opened a sudden ache caught him off guard. He staggered back slightly, rubbing his right temple and composed himself. He stepped into the small room finding the miner shaking on the ground. Porter glanced at him for a moment but ignored him when he saw the fragments. They were both around 30 centimetres in length, blood red in colour with glowing symbols. As he prepared to take the fragments, the miner grabbed Porter's right leg causing Porter to almost jump before he considered the miner.

"Evil… it's evil." He stammered.

Porter cocked his head to the right before bending down and helping the miner up. "You are weak." He wrapped his hands around his throat and crushed the miner's throat before dropping his corpse to the ground.

Porter exhaled smoothly as he smoothed his uniform and walked back to the fragments. He sifted through the locker and found a large bag, perfect for carrying the fragments out. Another piercing pain caught him off guard as he looked at the fragments.

"I know, holy ones, I hear your message. But I…" Porter was suddenly faced with something he knew couldn't be real.

His father had been dead for years and yet here he stood. _No_ Porter thought, it was simply an apparition.

"I am not an apparition, my son." The elder Porter said, his uniform a pristine white, just as it was in Porter's memories. "I'm here to tell you that your mission needs to change."

Porter suddenly saw it from the correct viewpoint. "The church is wrong." Porter said softly. "The overseers are wrong, we need to spread the word."

Porter's father nodded slowly. "Yes, my son, unleash it upon the ship."

"I know what I must do." Porter said softly as he zipped the duffle and walked out of the room.

He'd inform the church later of what he was planning, they'd understand and should realise he was only doing the will of Altman. Importantly, Porter would have to plan his own escape while he still could. While he wanted to remain, he also needed to feed the church back information about the results. He hurried his pace as he headed for the exit, blending between the busy miners. He thought he was home free before he encountered the wall of man that was Alex Denton. He stopped short, thankful that he wasn't followed by that intolerable chief. Nevertheless, his presence was unneeded, and Denton was generally insufferable.

"First officer," he inquired with a raised eyebrow and smirk. "What brings you down to our neck of the woods?"

Porter pushed his glasses up, doing his best to hide his sneer. "Nothing of your concern, Mr Denton."

Alex cocked his head to the left, his smirk broadening. "Well considering I'm second in command on this deck, yeah, it is. Spill it."

"Mr Denton, I am the first officer aboard this ship, I do not have to answer your questions. If you must know, I was running an errand for the Captain. He wishes to know how the haul is going." Another lie but Porter's ability to lie was unmatched.

Alex shrugged as he stepped aside. "See, was that so hard?"

Porter gave a faux smile. "Of course not, if you would excuse me." _Insufferable oaf,_ Porter thought as he walked past.

"Lying sneaky bastard." Alex muttered as he shook his head and walked into the main mining area.

 _Crew Deck, security office_

"MAKE US WHOLE! MAKE US WHOLE!"

"SHUT UP!" Brandt shouted in reply to the incessant shouting. "Before I taze you again." He muttered.

The security office was tucked away in a spacious but sparsely decorated office area with a set of desks, weapons locker and finally a brig. The brig had three rooms and currently two of them were occupied with prisoners who had gone insane. The first had Marion who was strangely silent, something that scared him because she'd simply shut down when he returned. The other was home to a tram technician who had tried to throw a passenger in front of a moving tram. Another officer had brought him and left him in the cell to cool down, but he had gotten progressively worse. Now Brandt was stuck in an office with a screaming madman and a strangely silent woman. He scrolled through the report for the tram technician, his eyebrow rising and shaking his head. While these two were the only ones locked up, reports from different decks were coming in of strange acts and even some random acts of violence. While most of the acts were petty, some like the tram technician and engineering murder were unnerving. Brandt's rig suddenly bleeped with the tram technician continuing to shout.

"For fucks sake, I will shoot you if you don't shut up!" Brandt yelled before answering his RIG. "What?!" He shouted.

" _Is that any way to talk to your Captain, Chief Brandt_?" Anders said with a warm smile.

"James, shit, I'm sorry." Brandt said silently kicking himself. He rubbed his face wearily. "What can I do for you?"

" _I'm getting some troubling reports from around the ship. Acts of violence, petty theft, even some strange markings on the walls_." Anders paused. " _What's happening out there_?"

Brandt forwarded some of the reports to Anders's RIG. "General ruckus, nothing more."

" _Are you sure? First the murder, now these instances of supposed psychosis. I've read Doctor Mera's report on the systems engineer's breakdown and I still can't explain it."_

Brandt was getting frustrated. "What do you want from me, James? I can't explain this shit because, quite honestly, I've never seen anything like it."

" _I need to know if we can sustain this or if we're going to lose the crew. Do you think we need to leave?"_

Brandt stroked his chin. "James, this entire situation is giving me the shivers. Okay, that murder was something we've never seen on this ship. If I'm being honest, we need to leave while we still can."


	7. Chapter 7

_(A/N) - Up in the sky! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No, its an early upload! Yep, I'm early this week, mainly because I can't trust my stupid memory to remind me to upload tomorrow. At least this way, I'll know its out there. So, this is a longer chapter and its packed. Hope you enjoy it! We're down to the last three. How will it end?! Horror, blood, guts! Maybe, I don't know..._

 _Chapter Seven_

 _Engineering deck_

 _Shockpoint drive_

Situated below the processing sub deck, the shockpoint drive connected directly to the engine room. Though shockpoint technology had progressed considerably in the last 200 years, drives on larger ships still consumed vast cavernous space and needed non-stop attention. The housing itself was large and broad nearing ten metres in length and four meters in width. However, the _Dauntless'_ drive was dated having not been updated in nearly 17 years, meaning it was in desperate need of a refit. It often needed hours upon hours to recharge and it didn't help that the navigation system was shot. It sometimes dropped the _Dauntless_ planets away from its destination or even in a different system. Jason eyed the drive with a sense of trepidation, accompanied by two other engineers. He'd switched into his large, bulky engineering RIG, a dark brown in colour with pressure seals and various pieces of armour. Despite the bulk, the RIG's weight was barely noticeable, and Jason could move freely. Jason, along with his other engineers, had been working to overcharge the drive for an hour or so. It had been a losing battle of watching the readout lead into the red zone and staying there for the last few minutes. Jason had one last trick to play and it probably wouldn't work. He lofted a large cylinder, roughly one metre in length and slogged towards the drive. He pressed a few panels and counted down before setting the cylinder inside the drive housing and backed away. The cylinder hissed and began to leak blue energy onto the drive, causing a slight burst of steam to emit. Jason was sure that wasn't supposed to happen and that the drive had only one jump left but such was the situation he had to work with. He reactivated his kinesis module pulled the drive's housing core shut and sighed in relief. In theory, stasis could be used to cool down an object as well as slowing it down. Jason was hoping it could keep the drive in the amber for the entirety of the 26-hour jump.

One of Jason's engineers, Hardy, whistled in awe. "Using a stasis core to keep the core cool for the overcharge? That's a bit ingenious boss."

Jason smirked. "Yeah, well it was only a theory when I came across it in college. And by theory, I'm pretty sure my instructor was half drunk half high. Let's just hope it works long enough to get us home." He grunted softly and dropped to his knee wearily; he'd had a headache for an hour or so now and it was only growing worse. "Give me some readings."

The other engineer, Irons, spoke in a loud deep voice, commanding attention. "Readings are creeping back into orange levels and normalising. Don't know how long it'll hold but its working boss."

Jason fell back slightly, taking his helmet off and sighing wearily. He consulted his own RIG interface and inspected the readings. "Let's just hope it hold for the final jump. Although that may be the least of our problems, the damned stress fractures may tear the ship apart."

Hardy disengaged his helmet revealing a brutal face full of scars, a pronounced nose that had been broke repeatedly, long black hair and hazel coloured eyes. "Oh, shit, I forgot about those damn fractures. Surprised the last jump didn't break the ship's back."

Irons retracted his helmet and revealed a large scar stretching from his chin down towards his neck. He was bald with dark skin, black eyes and a wide build. "Don't jinx us." He said nervously. "This place makes me feel sick."

Jason glanced at Irons; Irons, like Jason, wasn't a man to put stock in feelings or jinxes and if he was feeling nervous about the operation, something had to be wrong. The entire system felt wrong, as if the tragedy had permanently enshrouded the system. "Look, whatever happens, we're getting back to Rigel VII and I'm buying you all a round of drinks. Otherwise, I'm kicking all your asses back to earth." The men shared a laugh at Jason's statement.

The door suddenly hissed open disrupting the momentary peace of the scene. Richards, another engineer, entered wearing an engineering RIG and brandishing a plasma cutter. He spoke slowly, methodically.

"Hey, boss?" He said, his voice timid.

Mason glanced over, raised an eyebrow and spoke up. "Well, spit it out Richards I haven't got all day."

Richards's helmet disengaged and folded away into the spinal compartment. He was sweating profusely; his eyes were bloodshot and his bottom lip quivered. He spoke again. "Make us whole."

In a swift motion, he opened fire with the plasma cutter and fired at irons. A single bolt of plasma ripped through Irons' right knee, shearing the leg in half. Irons collapsed to the ground, screaming in pain, a horrific sight for a man of his normal stoicism. Hardy was frozen in fear, jaw dropped and unable to react. Richards quickly opened on fire on him, a single shot lancing through his chest, leaving a gaping hole in his body. He collapsed to the floor, dead instantly, his RIG's biosensors reacting and flatlining. Jason had little time to react; he rushed forward pushing Richards's firing arm up and forcing him to fire a blast into the celling. Jason directed a harsh jab into his stomach and a final right hook which knocked Richards out. Jason panted hard as Richards fell to the ground unconscious. He rushed over to Irons and quickly examined but he already knew Irons wasn't going to make it. The RIG's armour had done little to protect Irons from the high intensity plasma burst. Metal had fused into the area above the wound, the heat searing it into his skin. The leg itself was hanging by a single thread of skin with copious amounts of blood pouring from the wounds.

"Shit, Irons, keep breathing. I've got a med pack." Jason said, trying to control his feelings.

"Boss... it hurts, Boss." He managed weakly.

"Dammit, hang on." Jason activated the small med pack and poured the liquid into the wound and watched as it futilely attempted to seal the wound.

"Boss... there's a letter in my bunk. My sis... she's getting married. I promised her I'd have some money to help her pay for it. Whatever we get paid, give it to her okay." He begged, whimpering as he spoke.

"Dammit, Irons, quit that shit, you'll be fine. I'm getting you home." Jason said in anger, realising he was lying.

The gel had done little to stem the blood flow and was generally failing. Irons was bleeding out and medical couldn't get there in time. Jason took Irons' right hand for comfort with Irons giving a pleading face. Jason simply nodded, and Irons finally died, gasping as life left him. Jason couldn't contain his pain; he roared in anger punched the floor. That made three of his miners that had died on his watch in a matter of hours. He was getting angrier and more distraught. He was failing in his duties and something was affecting his crew. He glanced over at Richards' unconscious body, seemingly at peace despite his actions. Jason calmed himself and stood slowly. He shook his head sent a call to med bay.

"Med bay, this is Chief Mason, I've got two bodies for the morgue."

There was uninterrupted static for fifteen seconds, something that never happened since emergency calls were always answered instantly. Suddenly Kate's panicked face appeared, a small gash gracing her forehead. "Jason, oh thank god, I need you now. Please, there's something loose and it's killing people."

Jason frowned in fear and partial anger. "What? What's loose? How many are dead?"

Kate looked around, directing someone off screen to lock a door before replying. "I don't know. Please, we're locked in a storage area. I had to seal us in."

"Okay, listen. I'm on my way. Just be safe." He said reassuringly as he closed the link down and called Alex. "Bro, I need your help; send two security officers to the shockpoint drive and tell them there are two dead miners with the unconscious perp. Meet me at the tram station and bring a contact beam."

Alex didn't blink, he simply nodded and said. "Got it bro, see you there."

Jason took the plasma cutter, a few charges and sprinted out of the shockpoint core.

 _Medical deck_

It hadn't taken much for Arnold Porter to simply slip into the medical deck, inventing a lie about an inspection on behalf of the Captain of the victims. While there, he'd avoided any detection and entered the morgue, finding the corpses of both the crazed engineer and the young woman. His father had told him how to use the fragments, placing them by the near the corpses and watched as the relics began to glow with power. His father had advised him to hide, the holy prophets that would come would not spare him and he still had work to do. Porter had locked himself in an adjacent room and accessed the camera system to witness the divine act. The woman was the first to turn, the artefact's glorious power warping her into a beautiful servant. Her body was moulded into a bat like creature with skin from her chest forming 'wings' and her arms and legs formed into a 'arm' like appendages. Finally, an enlarged proboscis formed, composed of bone and muscle. The creature at first sat still as if waiting and then attached itself to the ceiling. The marker began twisting the murder's body into something different; the skin appeared to grow pale and translucent while the arm bones sharpened into blades. Vestigial arms burst out of the gut and what was once a normal human resembled something out of a nightmare. Again, the creature remained still until the morgue door hissed open revealing an attendant. The bat like creature leapt onto the attendant directing its proboscis into his forehead. The attendants agonised cries only lasted a few seconds before his facial skin was almost peeled off by its own volition and became a similar creature to engineer. The bat creature hurled itself through a vent and proceeded out of the deck while twin creatures streaked out of the room setting upon the nurses and doctors outside. In their wake, they left a bloody trail of bodies and screams. Porter switched through different camera feeds, watching with horrific curiosity and recording the footage, ready to beam it back to earth. The bloody slaughter seemed to die down after a few minutes with fresh corpses littering the deck. Porter opened the door and proceeded to slowly walk out, making sure he was clear as he did so. There were so many bodies, almost all of them gored beyond recognition, that Porter was sceptical of how they could be repurposed. A sudden hand grabbed his foot, putting Porter on edge before he realised it was simply a dying orderly. The man's face had been nearly bisected, but he was still clinging on to life. Porter sneered in disgust as he wrenched his foot away and continued his journey through the crimson deck. Porter spotted a nearby locked storage cabinet and gazed through the fogged windows. He glanced at the lock and quickly deduced it had been locked from the inside. A sudden thump alerted Porter.

Kate Mera had managed to bandage a small gash on her forehead, but her face was pale from fear. She wasn't happy to see Porter. "Porter, what the fuck are you doing here?" She quickly shook her head. "Never mind, I need you to help us. There's something here and it's killing us. I've called Jason and I'm waiting for he to get us out of here. Can you help us out?"

Porter kept calm and played the role of potential rescuer. "The Captain sent me down to explain the recent power outage. Have you any idea what happened?"

Kate shook her head. "No, one of my nurses screamed when an orderly got bisected and I corralled the rest of my staff in this locker." Kate calmed herself again. "Porter, I know you and Jason don't see eye to eye, but I need your help now. I've got some injured and I can't treat them here."

Porter at first said nothing, then a sickeningly horrifying smile spread over his head. "You're going to die, Kate, you, your boyfriend and your staff. After this, all that will be waiting for you is perdition." Porter opened his RIG interface and began to disengage the lock.

Kate instantly realised what he was doing. She thumped the door in anger with her fists and snarled. "Stop, you bastard." She spoke through gritted teeth. "I'll kill you for this!"

Porter's smile grew into a smirk as he rolled his eyes. "Oh please, you insufferable whore."

Porter focused on his work, breaking through Kate's overrides with his own executive clearance. Suddenly, something crashed into him, sending him past the door. Jason delivered two quick blows to Porter's torso and a final heavy right hook to his Jaw. Porter fell to the ground but almost bounced back up, launching a vicious assault. Porter was a deceptively talented hand to hand combatant and easily forced Jason onto his back foot. Jason moved into a boxer's block, doing his best to weave between Porter's blows but he was too slow. Jason was famous for his legendary right hook, but it had been years since he'd had to fight for his life. Porter launched a laser guided jab into Jason's ribs causing Jason to wheeze in pain, but he managed to block a forceful left hook. He fought through the pain and grappled with Porter, landing a solid right knee into Porter's gut. Porter reeled and backed away as Jason took his chance and landed a final hammer right hook to his temple. Porter fell unconscious to the ground as Jason wearily leaned against the wall, winded and nearly exhausted.

He panted heavily before slowing his breathing and addressed his girlfriend. "You... okay?" He said in between gasps.

Kate's jaw dropped. "Me? What about you?!"

Jason dismissed her worry with a flick of his wrist. "Ah, don't worry, I was going easy on him." His false bravado didn't convince Kate who continued to look uneasy. "Let me get you out of there." He ripped the door panel off and quickly hot wired the door, breaking the lock. Kate and her staff quickly filed out, all looking exhausted.

"What's the plan?" She asked, checking her boyfriend's scratches and newly formed bruises.

"Report to ship security, get some information about what the fuck is happening. On the way here, I and Alex got calls from all over the ship. Long story short, people are going batshit insane. We need to leave the system now before this gets worse." Jason finally took a moment to take in the bloody sight. "What the hell happened here?"

She sighed softly, composing herself. "Honestly, I've no idea. One minute everything's fine and then all hell breaks loose. I think it started in the morgue and then broke out into the wards. I lost two thirds of my crew in under five minutes. At that point I grabbed who I could and locked us in here. Some of my staff are injured and I'll need to treat them elsewhere.

Jason eyed them uneasily. "They fit to travel?" Kate nodded in reply which was enough to convince Jason. "Did Mark make it?"

Kate sadly shook her head. "He was one of the first we lost." She paused, glancing down at Porter with disgust. "What are we doing with that asshole?"

Jason shared Kate's look of disgust, filled with anger but realising he had to get answers. "Hell." He said softly as he slung Porter over his shoulder. "I need him. After I get my answers I'll throw him to the wolves."

The walk from the storage room to the deck entrance was slow and fraught with danger. Jason and Kate took the lead with the staff walking closely behind them. Jason reached for Kate's hand and squeezed it softly, reassuring himself as they continued walking. He was still aghast at the sight of copious amounts of blood, but the lack of bodies concerned him. Even Kate had noticed that she couldn't account for the staff she had lost. A sudden noise caught them all off guard, startling Jason and Kate. He craned his neck, facing the source of the sound and sighed with relief as he noticed a nurse had accidentally knocked a table over. He wiped his sweaty forehead and continued forward. Within seconds a blood curdling shriek of fear sent chills down his spine. He spun on his heel and his eyes widened as he saw the same nurse clutching her stomach. She looked up at Jason, almost pleading with him but she already knew she was dead. The entirety of her insides poured out of her stomach and she fell, dead, on the ground. A horrific looking creature stood behind the nurse's body, long blade like appendages coated in crimson. It roared at the group, consumed with abject hatred.

Jason refocused and ordered the crew as he quickly as he could. "RUN!"

The group didn't need to be told twice and followed him to the deck entrance. Jason dropped the rear of the group, knowing Porter was slowing him down but also knowing he was the only one with a weapon. If push came to shove, he'd have to drop Porter and reach for the plasma cutter. He kept running and caught sight of Alex ahead, waiting near the tram.

"Bro, what's happening?" His eyes widened, and his jaw dropped in terror as he saw the monster chasing them. "What the fuck is that?"

Out of the tram, Chief Brandt emerged, wielding his divet pistol and took aim at the creature. Without stopping, he plugged the creature with three shots, each impacting the monster's torso. The creature ran right through the laser cut lead bullets, charging Brandt down. Brandt fired again, this time emptying his clip into the creature, but the monster didn't stop.

"What the fuck is that thing?" He screamed, scrambling to reload his pistol.

In a flash, Alex barged Brandt out of the way and used his contact beam to block a strike from the creature. Alex landed a hard kick into the creature midsection sending it back a few feet. He wrestled control of his contact beam, charged the weapon up and got a shot away. A concentrated ball of energy completely liquified the creature, leaving a cavernous hole in its midsection. Alex and Brandt panted as they both regained their composure.

Alex regained a small smile and hefted his contact beam up. "See Brandt, not just a mining tool."

Jason hurried the survivors to the tram and addressed Brandt. "Did Alex call you?"

Brandt shook off his shell shock and calmly reloaded his pistol. "Yeah, told me to get here as quickly as possible." He bent down to examine the remains of the monster and whistled softly. "Good job I came."

"Yeah, because that pistol did the trick." Alex muttered sarcastically.

"Screw off, whatever that thing was, it wasn't human." He said defensively. "This thing normally stops a target with one shot to the centre mass."

"No one's doubting that gun," Jason said casting a sideways glance to Alex. "But that thing took an entire clip and still didn't go down." He moved closer to the corpse. "What the fuck is this thing anyway? Some kind of alien?"

Alex shook his head as he looked the corpse over. "Nah, it's human or at least it used to be." He gestured toward the creature. "See, it's basically one of us with the shoulder blades reformed into spear like appendages. I also think some of its organs have been rearranged or even shut down. Makes it tougher to put down." Jason looked at Alex incredulously. "What? I read a lot More's the point, I think it's dead."

"Yeah we gathered that." Brandt replied sarcastically.

"No, not like that, I mean I think the body was dead before it was morphed into this thing. Maybe that's why it was so hard to put down."

Jason shook his head. "Whatever's the case, we can't take on more of them. We need to get out of here."

Brandt nodded. "Chief's right. We can continue this at ship security and discuss why you've got this prick as well." He said, gesturing at Porter's unconscious body.

Without another word, the trio boarded the tram and left behind the medical wing, still dripping with fresh blood.


	8. Chapter 8

_(A/N) - Greetings kindly peoples, we are at chapter eight now. Already? I know, I can't believe it either. But alas all things must come to an end I suppose. I hope you enjoy this chapter and the ones to follow. I hope you've enjoyed the previous chapters as well. I hope you enjoy life in general. This is getting weird, isn't it? I'm out._

 _Chapter Eight_

 _Bridge_

"I understand that Chief Brandt has stepped out, officer Chen, but I need to know what these reports are that I'm getting." James Anders said, clearly beginning to lose his patience with the security officer.

" _And like I've tried to explain, sir, we're dealing with widespread hysteria." Chen responded, also sounding frustrated_. " _Chief Brandt stepped out a few moments ago and aside from I, the crew deck is largely undefended. Even now, my RIG is pinging with calls from different decks about strange acts. Worst of all, I just got word that someone saw an unidentified creature running down the corridor of the mining deck." Chen paused. "Sir, seriously, once I've got more information and once Brandt is back, we'll feed you for another report_."

"Fine." Anders said. "Just get back to me as quickly as possible."

He closed down the RIG link and rubbed his face wearily as he stared at his console. He'd been getting reports for the last half an hour about such acts of hysteria. It appeared that it was widespread with multiple reports of crew members literally breaking down into tears or committing acts of insanity. Worst of all, Anders had started getting signals of RIGs flatlining as if out of nowhere. All of this was worrying the normally stoic James Anders but what was beginning to frighten him was the whispers he'd started hearing. Those of his deceased daughter calling his name as if she were standing before him. He'd dismissed the whispers several times, attributing them to simple nerves that he could control. He took a drink from his water bottle and cracked his neck. He glanced at one of his deck cadets who was rapidly typing on a holographic keyboard.

"Deck cadet Mathews, report?"

Matthews almost jumped out of his skin when he heard Anders's voice. He quickly composed himself and swivelled on his chair to face the Captain. His eyes were bloodshot, and his normally well-maintained looks were haggard as if he hadn't slept for weeks. Strands of blond hair were covering his blue eyes as he pushed them out of the way. He cleared his throat before speaking, his voice carrying a slight tremble.

"Sir, addendum to your call with officer Chen, I'm getting widespread reports of panic and some serious injuries. It appears engineering is faring the worst, but we've had no contact with medical for about an hour or so. I've tried raising them, but I've had no response."

Anders frowned hard as he rested his chin on his right fist, considering his options. The ship was being hit with something, maybe a virus of some sort, but whatever it was, it was affecting the crew and disrupting the operation. If engineering was suffering the worst of the effects, then the operation was all but nullified. But more worryingly, medical were dark and not sending updates. No, something was definitely wrong, and it was time for them to leave this godforsaken place and fast.

"Alright, that's it people, I'm calling it." Anders announced. "Second Officer Hedford."

Second Officer Amber Hedford, a tall woman with black hair and brown eyes glanced over at the Captain. "Sir?" She asked in a commanding voice. As well as functioning as the second officer, she also looked after bridge security and was considered a harsh but fair voice of reason.

"Call down to gravity tether control and tell them to disengage the tethers. Then ready the crew for immediate shockpoint jump." Hedford nodded and sprinted towards her console and relayed the order. "Helm, engines full ahead, get us out of the system." Anders was determined to get his crew and ship out of the system, intact.

 _Crew Deck_

 _Tram station_

The tram screeched to a halt, throwing a few of the passengers forward. Jason cursed a storm, swearing bloody vengeance on whoever was supposed to repair the tram's brakes as he stood up slowly. The automatic doors refused to open so he and Alex forced it open, allowing Kate and her staff to exit.

"Just head straight for the security station. There's some med supplies you can use." Brandt said to which Kate responded with a nod. Brandt leant against the tram, wiping his sweaty forehead. "Fuck, I'm exhausted."

"Headache?" Alex asked.

"Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Had one for the last few hours." Alex said with a slight frown.

Jason pulled up his RIG link and tried to raise engineering again, but his RIG wouldn't connect. It had been the same for the entire journey and he was beginning to become concerned.

"I still can't raise my deck," He said with concern beginning to seep into his voice. "Did you hear anything from them before you left crew deck?" He asked Brandt.

Brandt shook his head. "No, but then again, we were getting calls from multiple decks about injuries and random acts of violence."

Jason frowned. "Shit."

There was a sudden lurch, catching the men unawares with Brandt even drawing his pistol.

"What the hell is happening now?" Brandt said, clearly annoyed.

Jason looked around. "Ships engines have been fire at full impulse." He said as he entered the tram and hauled the now conscious Porter up. Captain's probably trying to get us out of here."

"What about the haul?" Alex said, clearly surprised.

"Look around, Alex." Jason said. "After what happened in med bay, the haul isn't worth it. Especially if we're under attack or something."

Porter grinned maniacally as he reared his head up. "You think you're going to escape divine judgement? We're all going to be one with the Marker, convergence is at hand."

Jason pushed him out of the tram. "That's right, dick, keep talking. I still need to pay you back for the bruises."

Jason and Alex followed Brandt to the security station, monetarily stopping in the REC area when Brandt spotted Merle. The elder man was still tending to the young children in his care. Brandt was surprised their father hadn't come to collect the children.

"Merle, what's happening?" He asked.

Merle looked up and shook his head. "Got a call from the shuttle deck, kids' father is busy with something and can't come yet." He shrugged. "I can watch them for a bit longer."

Brandt nodded. "You need anything, you know where I am."

"Yeah, sitting on your fat ass, sleeping." Merle retorted. "Chief, good to see you." He said to Jason.

"You too, Merle."

Before leaving Brandt took a second to survey the REC room; again, it was quiet, and something seemed off. He looked back to the place where the three children were singing that strange song and instantly felt a shiver travel down his spine. He shook it off and directed Jason and Alex towards the security station. Inspiringly, the station was still quiet except for one officer who was sat behind his desk typing away.

"Chen, when did you get back?" Brandt asked.

Chen, a young man of Asian descent, was of average height with brown eyes and brown hair with a toned build. His divet pistol lay on the desk next to his station and he looked exhausted. "About ten minutes ago, last call ended better than I thought it would. Got a call that someone was trying to pull his own damn arm off."

"What?" Brandt asked with a slight smirk.

"I shit you not, he was using his kinesis module to pull his arm off. Would've done it if I didn't knock him out."

"Where's everyone else then?" Brandt asked.

"They're in different parts of the ship dealing with cases. I've had some contact but other than that it's been all quiet."

"They're out dealing with some trouble in the rest of the deck. We got a call saying someone was trying to airlock themselves with their kids." Chen shook his head. "There's some crazy shit happening here."

Brandt raised his eyebrows but recovered his calm demeanour. "You, uh, you seen anything out of the ordinary, Chen?"

"I literally just described the shit I just saw." Chen asked, with a slight smirk.

Brandt shook his head. "No, man, I mean like something not human, like a monster."

Chen raised his eyebrow. "Nah, nothing like that. But it is like mass hysteria is being spread through the ship." Chen glanced back and focused on Porter. "What's the First Officer doing here?"

Brandt didn't look back. "We got some questions for this shit heel. Found him trying to get a bunch of docs and nurses killed in medical. Open the brig."

Chen smiled. "Finally, knew this fucker was dangerous. Could never understand why the Captain kept him so close."

Brandt shrugged. "Maybe he kept him close to keep an eye on him."

Chen conceded the point and brought up his rig, logging Porter's inclusion into the brig for attempted murder. Jason and Alex followed Brandt into the cell while Kate was busy treating some of her staff members. One had already passed from his wounds with Kate not having the necessary equipment to save him. The others had mostly superficial wounds with one having a mild concussion.

Porter sneered at Brandt as he placed shackles on his wrists. "You think these shackles will save you from divine wrath?"

"Divine wrath my ass." He said with a smirk.

"I am the first officer of this ship, I demand a full list of the supposed crimes I am being charged with."

Brandt smirked. "Buddy, I don't give a rat's ass what you want." Brandt slammed his fist onto a nearby table leaving a visible dent that shocked Porter. "The ship I swore to protect is going to hell, and I want to know what the fuck is going on." He glanced over to Jason. "Over to you, chief."

Jason cracked his knuckles audibly and pulled a chair, sitting opposite Porter. "Arnie old pal, old buddy." He pulled a faux smile. "Walk me through you trying to kill my girlfriend and a bunch of her staff."

As if only taking part of request into consideration, Porter responded, calmly and silently evil. "We are not friends.".

Jason's smile disappeared, replaced with one of pure hatred. "No, you're right. I've known you long enough to know that you're a manipulative, conniving son of a bitch. So, I'll ask again." He took a deep breath. "What. The. Fuck. Where you doing in medical?"

Porter remained calm. "I was performing a simple examination of the bodies." He gestured to his right wrist. "It's all on my RIG log."

"I'm sure it is, bet it even looks all fancy like, but what if I said I don't buy your bullshit." Jason retorted.

"Then I'd say you're a paranoid man, Mr Mason."

Jason slapped Porter, drawing blood from the corner of his mouth. Porter was shocked. "Oh yeah, you thought I was going to punch you? Well I need you awake, so let's try this again." Jason enunciated his words. "What the hell is going on?"

"It doesn't matter, you utter dullard. We're going to die but only one of us we'll see an afterlife."

Jason was struggling to suppress the urge to destroy Porter's face with his bare hands. "Enough of that unitologist bullshit, you condescending asshole!" He stood up and kicked his chair back. "Tell me, now!"

Porter finally lost his cool demeanour and broke out into a sweat. "Never!" He screamed. "I am loyal to The Marker."

Jason finally lashed out and punched Porter hard enough to knock him off his chair. Porter spat out a tooth and a mouthful of blood. "You made me bleed?!" He glanced over at Brandt. "He assaulted me!"

Brandt shrugged. "Yeah, and I'm only going to stop him if he kills you. I want as answers just as much as he does."

Jason punched him again, his knuckles splitting. "Tell me." Another punch. "Tell me."

Porter's face was bloody and bruised from the beating with the nose and jaw being misshapen. He spat more blood onto the ground but began to maliciously grin. "You have nothing to threaten me with, you vile brute. I will never tell you anything, but I tell you this." He paused briefly. "You're all going to die."

Jason landed another punch and would've landed another if Alex hadn't of stopped him. He shook his head as Jason glared at him with furore. "It's not worth it, bro. You'll rip your knuckles open for nothing."

Jason wrenched his arm free from Alex's grasp but quickly calmed himself. "Fine." He glanced back at Porter and shrugged. "He's unconscious anyway."

The trio stepped out of the brig and locked the door behind them. Jason furiously scratched his head and blinked several times before finally cracking his neck. He didn't want to admit it, but he was ready to Porter; not only had the bastard almost gotten Kate killed, he was hiding something about what was happening to the ship. Brandt sat down on a nearby chair and exhaled wearily, resting his divot pistol on a nearby table. Only Alex seemed to be unfazed by the strange tiredness affecting them both.

"Okay, so it's pretty clear the dickhead's lost his mind." Alex concluded. "But what's this shit about being loyal to the Marker. I thought Unitology was a rational science-based religion?"

Jason wearily rubbed his face. "Unitology's just a cult dressed up in fancy clothes. It sucks up useless idiots like Porter and makes them dangerous." He sighed frustratedly.

"Always thought Porter was too smart for Unitology." Brandt said with a slight smirk.

"He is." Jason said. "But he's got a superiority complex the size of the Ishimura that leads him to seek out chances to prove how better he is than everyone else." He shook his head. "It doesn't matter now anyway."

"What's our next move?" Alex asked to no one in particular.

Jason deferred to Brandt who scratched his chin. "I don't know. Honestly, this is nice, the quiet. Ever since that engineer died we've been working at 100% nonstop. I'm nearly exhausted."

Jason nodded in agreement. "We should take advantage. I'm calling home." Home referring to engineering. He brought up his RIG link and called engineering. "Crews talk to me."

Crews was third in commander on the deck. A stalwart, mountain of a man that even dwarfed Alex, he was solid under pressure and a trusted advisor. But he looked haggard and almost exhausted when he popped up on the video RIG link. "Boss, damn it's good to hear from you."

"You look like hell, Crews, what have you done to my deck?"

"Nothing boss, but," he paused briefly as his eyes widened. "Fuck me it's been weird. Seriously after you left we started dropping workers like flies. Whether it was extreme fatigue, or some poor bastard try to claw his eyes out. I've tried calling medical to have them removed but I've had no response."

"Yeah well you won't get one." Jason said bluntly. "Medical's down. It's why I left. Listen, what' happening with the haul?"

"Captain gave the order to disconnect so that's what we done. At the moment, I've got a skeleton crew working on the minerals we've got but I've had to send a few to main deck." Crews reported.

"I sense there's something else." Jason said.

Crews frowned hard. "I've had reports that the power grid is on the blink. Nothing major like life support or ADS power but mainly lights and stuff. I've got no one to send to fix it."

Jason grunted ambivalently. "Fine, we'll deal with when we've jumped."

"Jumped?" Crews said with a slight smirk. "You sure we can jump?"

Jason cursed himself. "Hell, if I know. We'll just have to wait. Meanwhile, just," He took a breath. "Just take care of the guys and keep them safe."

"I'll do my best, boss."

"I know you will, Crews, I know you will." Jason said as he closed the link down. He felt exhausted almost as if the report from Crews had completely drained him of his energy.

"JASON! WE'VE GOT BIGGER PROBLEMS!" Kate screamed from outside the room.

"Oh, fuck me." Jason muttered as he, Alex and Brandt sprinted out of the room.

The office was mess with chairs and tables having been turned over and Kate and her staff backing up to the rear. A strange creature with half its lower body replaced by a spear tipped tale had impaled an orderly who screamed in between chocking on blood. Kate tried to grab for his hand but was almost flung away by the creature. Chen had taken his Divet and opened fire, emptying a clip into the creatures' body. The creature shrugged off the rounds with horrific ease, freezing Chen in his place as he stalled to reload his weapon. Before he could shake himself from the shock, the creature whipped its tail like appendage from the orderly and struck at Chen. He barely had time to scream before he was decapitated, his headless body flailing and the head being tossed into the nearby wall. Everyone was frozen in shock, even Brandt couldn't draw his weapon. Jason had to shake off the fear and reached for his plasma cutter. He took aim at the creature, remembering the frustrating weapon drills he'd done all those years ago. _Centre mass, Jace, centre mass,_ he thought as he steadied his breath and fired off a shot of plasma energy. The shot ripped through the creature's torso but barely fazed it as it growled in anger and began crawling forward. Nerves started to set in as Jason's hand shook and the next shot missed its mark, shearing the creature's arm off. Copious amounts of blood gushed out of the wound and stained the ground. For some reason, the creature shrieked in pain and reacted strongly compared to the shots from the divet. Jason took that in mind, aiming at its other arm and sliced it clean off. The creature recoiled in pain and finally died, it's body writhing for a moment or two. Jason resumed breathing and fell back against the wall.

"Holy fuck in shock space, what the hell just happened?" Alex said, his voice trembling slightly.

Brandt gave a mournful look as he knelt next to Chen's body and closed his eye for a moment of respect. He rubbed his face wearily and muttered. "See you on the other side, buddy." He regained his composure, steeling his nerves as he stood up. "We need to get out of here."

"And go where?" Kate asked, consoling one of her doctors.

"I don't know." Brandt said with a rueful tone.

Jason placed a hand on Kate's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "Give him a moment." He said softly to which Kate simply nodded and walked over to staff. Jason ventured over to Brandt who was standing by the brig door. "You okay, Brandt?"

"No, I'm not." He said simply. "Just, I just need a minute, man. A minute to collect my thoughts and plan."

Jason nodded. "I get it, Alan, I really do."

"Didn't realise how much it would hurt to lose someone like that." He said shaking his head. "Can't believe you're still standing."

Jason considered his words with a mournful look. "I wish I wasn't, Brandt."

Brandt continued to look at the wall while Jason backed away and stood with Alex. "Tell me something, bud, is it me or did that thing seem to react more when I took its limbs off?"

"Nah, it's definitely not you. For some reason, it seemed to lose it and finally die when it lost its limbs. Maybe that's it, the key to killing these things is cutting them apart." Alex replied.

"Let's hope so." Jason said reloading his plasma cutter. "You ready for more?"

Alex shook his head. "You know me, I hate fighting."

"I know, bud, I do as well." Jason had to admit he was slightly lying; true he hated needless fights, but as a young boy he'd grown up by himself and often had to look after himself. The fights he'd gotten himself into were often teaching points. How to counter, how to jab, or more importantly, how to realise when someone was trying to hurt something or someone he cared about. "Your contact beam got any energy left?"

Alex smiled and hefted his contact beam. "Sure, only got a few shots so it's best to save it for something good."

"What about the prick in interrogation?" Brandt said clearly talking about Porter.

Jason wanted to leave the bastard behind but if he wasn't completely heartless. "Shit bring him. I can't let him be torn apart like that." He walked back into the brig and unlocked the door. Porter had finally woken up and his face was still swollen from the beating. "Come on, scumbag. We're getting out of here." Porter glared at Jason but complied with the order and stood. Jason marched him out and glanced over at Brandt. "You've got two other prisoners in the brig, what are we doing with them?"

Brandt frowned. "Don't know to be honest. We can take them but they're practically insane at the moment. Might slow us down." Brandt looked as if he was seriously considering leaving them behind before he shook his head. "No, even I'm not heartless." He muttered as he went to a small cabinet and unlocked it. He retrieved a pulse rifle and quickly inserted a clip into the weapon. "You think those creatures can be stopped by tearing them apart?" Jason nodded to which Brandt grunted and activated his RIG link. "To all ship security officers, this is Chief Brandt, I'm sure you've noticed the apparent wave of hysteria shaking the ship. As well as that, we're under attack by some kind of creatures that are hard to put down. Avoid them at all cost, they're hyper lethal. If you must fight, tear them apart; aim for the limbs, it does the trick. Coordinate with survivors and head to evac pods or shuttles. Stay safe guys."

"You think they're okay?" Jason asked.

Brandt shrugged while he checked his pulse rifle over. "I don't know, could be dead. Probably are. But if they're not, they'll get my message and pass it on."

A sudden chime caught them off guard and made them all jump. "Attention: power fluctuations are now affecting all decks. Sporadic light and life support outages are to be expected. That is all." The masculine computer voice said.

Jason rolled his eyes. "Shit, I thought we'd have some more time before that kicked in." He glanced over at Brandt. "Where's the safest place on the ship?"

Brandt pursed his lips and frowned. "Hangar bay has a fortified position and it's obviously close to the shuttles. We can head there and hold up while we wait for any other survivors."

Jason nodded and with that the survivors exited the security office into the brig. Brandt led them out, holding his pulse rifle steady, ready to fire on anything in their path. He turned a corner towards the REC area and almost dropped his rifle in shock. His widened but he felt dull, hollow, as looked at Merle's wounded body near his shop. He was holding his badly bleeding stomach and breathing labouredly. He heard Jason mutter a torrent of curses when he caught sight of the mortally wounded man. They made their way towards him and when they were near his eyes opened slowly.

"Heh, thought it'd be a heart attack that finally got me." He said with a painful laugh. "Didn't realise I'd get cut apart."

"Oh, Merle," Brandt said kneeling next to him. "Why didn't you call me, dammit?"

Merle shook his head. "I didn't think. Just wanted to get the kids to safety. Did they get to the office? I'm having trouble seeing stuff, my vision's going blurry."

Brandt's eyes widened for a second before regaining his composure. "Yeah, Merle, I'm going to get them to safety." He quickly wiped an errant tear form his eye. "I'll get them off this ship."

Merle nodded slowly, his breathing becoming more pained. "That's all that matters, Brandt. Godspeed."

Merle let out one final shallow breath and died. Brandt wanted to hit something, but he had to remain in control. Jason helped him up slowly and nodded knowingly before looking around. He spotted the remains of an arm, belonging to one of the creatures, with spear like appendages.

"Merle didn't go down without a fight." He concluded softly.

"Yeah, well, he was always a stubborn bastard." Brandt said

"My children," Marion said softly. "They're dead, aren't they?"

Brandt glanced back. "I, I'm sorry."

She welled up. "You should have let us die together." Before any of them could react, she rushed towards the spear and in a swift motion, slit her throat. She gurgled on her blood before finally collapsing dead on the floor.

"Fuck!" Jason shouted. "I couldn't stop her."

Brandt appeared indifferent. "It doesn't matter. C'mon, it's time to get out of here."

Jason watched as Brandt started walking away with the other survivors. He glanced over at Alex who looked at a loss for words. "Alex, you good buddy?"

Alex put his smile back on and nodded. As they moved off, Alex glanced back at the play area he'd been staring at. As if unaware of everything, his younger sister was sitting, swinging her legs back and forth. She looked up at Alex, smiled sweetly and waved. "See you soon, Alex." Alex shook his head and walked out after the group.


	9. Chapter 9

_(A/N) - Well here is chapter nine, I can't believe there's only one left to go. This has been fun and I hope everyone's enjoyed the story so far. The last two chapters will be shorter but they will wrap things up. Thanks for reading and enjoy the latest chapter._

 _Chapter Nine_

 _Bridge_

"YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND. WE NEED TO DIE, WE NEED TO BE MADE WHOLE!" Deck cadet Matthews screamed hysterically as he was restrained by Second Officer Hedford and pulled away from his station.

"Calm down, Matthews, for god's sake." Hedford shouted as she cleanly lifted him up and pulled him towards one of the bridge security officers.

That was the fifth crew member that had to be removed from their station. It was becoming clearly that whatever was affecting the ship had now moved onto the bridge. Anders couldn't afford to lose any more of his staff.

"Hedford, how is he?" He asked.

"How do you think?" Hedford said bluntly. "He's gone mental." She said with shake of her head.

Anders wiped sweat from his brow as he called up engineering. "Chief Mason, report." He ordered.

"Chief Mason isn't here sir, this is Third Engineer Crews reporting."

Anders almost swore in frustration but remained calm. "Crews, where in all of space is Mason?"

"He was called to medical about an hour ago. Hasn't been back since. I heard from him about fifteen minutes ago. Meant to call you but," There was a brief pause as screaming came over the audio. "Ah, dammit, Johnson stop him from pulling his damn teeth out." He cleared his throat. "What do you need sir?"

Anders regained his composure. "I need a full report on the engines and the shockpoint drive. Are we ready for a jump?"

"Sir, I've been working on the engines and we're having some issues with the fuel. I think there was an accident that blew out one of the pipes."

"You think, or you know?" Anders asked impatiently.

"I know, sir. I had a report a few minutes ago that some fu-, sorry, some crew member let fly a detonator charge. Damage is mostly superficial but it's enough to harm our reserves. You've probably noticed the sluggish response from the impulse engines? At my best calculation, we'll be able to maintain half impulse for six hours max."

"What about the shockpoint drive?"

"According to my log, the Chief managed to initiate a cool down using a stasis field." There was a pause. "Fuck me, he actually did it. Uh, sorry sir, the drive's cooling down and actually looks pretty normal. But, the power grid is beginning to short and needs some major repairs that I can't handle at this time. What little control I have is being spent on rerouting it to engines, life support and the shockpoint drive."

Anders visibly reacted to the report by slamming his fist against the console. "Shit!" He shouted, finally losing his cool. "Crews, can we jump?"

"Sir regardless of the Chief's work with the drive, the stress fractures along the spine of the ship have gotten worse. A jump might snap the ship in half."

"So, we're dead in space?" Anders presumed.

"You've got half impulse speed, and if you give me some time, we can attempt a minimum jump in roughly," Crews paused. "Two hours."

A sudden crash alerted Anders as he quickly deactivated his link. He turned around to face the source of the disturbance. At the rear of the bridge, near the entrance, a vent's cover had suddenly forced itself of the hinges, clattering to the ground and startling the crew. A few silent seconds passed, with everyone on edge before a sudden inhuman roaring vibrated the vent. A creature leapt out, somewhat vaguely resembling a human with spear like appendages for arms and a twisted human like face. Four deck security officers reacted, drawing their divets and taking aim.

"Halt!" One of them shouted but the creature simply charged at him.

The line of officers opened fire, the combined force of their weapons enough to put the first creature down. They quickly reloaded as three other creatures emerged from the vents and began attack bridge crew. One charged down Third Officer Hedford, but she was lightning quick as she dropped to a role and avoided the creature. She lashed out with a furious right hook, knocking the creature down. She went to throw another punch, but the creature moved faster than she could react and removed her right arm. She collapsed to her knees, wailing in pain as she held the stub up. The creature quickly bisected her, and she fell dead to the ground. Bridge crew immediately left their posts, running for the exit but they were cut down one after another. Terrified screams echoed through the bridge as the security officers struggled to regain control. They kept firing, but more creatures emerged, and their weapons began to lose their effectiveness. Two security officers were felled in an instant and only one remained who quickly regrouped with Anders.

"Sir! I have to get you to your escape pod." He shouted over the noise.

"No!" Anders roared as he drew his own pistol, firing off rounds at the creatures. "We need to alert the crew and sound a general evacuation order." He looked over at his console. "Son, we're both going to die here but the least we can do is give the crew some hope."

The security officer nodded as he ran to the console and began entering the order. Anders looked at his wrist and called up a RIG link directly to Chief Brandt.

"Brandt, this is Anders, the bridge is lost, repeat, the bridge is lost. Evacuate the ship at all costs, that is a direct order."

"Brandt, this is the bridge, we're being attacked by some unknown hostile. We need backup, now!"

Brandt's reply was hounded by static. " _Captain - can - barely - you. Seeing - same - thing - throughout the ship -. Heading for…_ " The link cut out,

"Brandt? Brandt!'

"Captain look out!" The security officer yelled.

Anders saw a creature running towards him in a full sprint. He opened fire, nailing two shots into one of the creature's leg and slowing it to a crawl. The bridge now resembled a bloody wasteland as more creature poured out of the vents.

 _Tram_

"The link just cut out?" Jason asked with some concern.

Brandt kept trying to swipe away the interference, but the static refused to let up. He closed it down and growled in frustration. "Dammit, I need to get there and find the Captain."

Jason frowned as he realised he was faced with a no-win situation. The best thing they could do now was head to the shuttle deck and secure a craft to escape. But they couldn't need leave the Captain behind to a horrific fate. Jason was also tempted to get to engineering and rally what was left of his crew. Since Crews' report, he'd had no word from the deck and was left assume the worst. There were also the survivors to think about and if they could survive another encounter.

He looked at Brandt. "The way I see it, if we want to find the Captain, we'll need to split the group up. That means, I, you and Alex can go to the bridge and find Anders while the others use the tram and head for the shuttle deck."

"What?! No, I'm not leaving you, Jason." Kate interjected.

"Kate, regardless of how badass you are, there's a high chance we'll die in another encounter with those things. Ask Brandt, he'll tell you straight." Jason said with a slight shrug.

Brandt returned the frown but nodded slowly. "He's right, Kate. We need to be careful." He noticed Kate was still unconvinced. "Okay, think of it like this, while we head to the bridge, you can go to the shuttle deck and prepare a shuttle. When we get back, with or without the Captain, we leave."

Kate seemed to be placated by that as she glanced at Jason. "See, why couldn't you suggest something like that?"

Before Jason could reply, a sudden crash caught them all off guard as the rear of the tram. The entire rear half of the tram was ripped off almost causing the tram to veer off the track. With it, the last of Kate's staff were crushed and pulled off the tram. Kate screamed their names before Jason pulled back towards the front of the tram.

'"What the fuck is that?" Kate yelled as a behemoth like creature appeared at the back of the tram.

It clawed forward, trying to reach for the last survivors and pulled more chairs out of their roots. It clawed again taking Porter and the last prisoner away, killing them instantly. Brandt opened fire with his pistol, but the rounds harmlessly bounced off the creature's thick hide.

"For fuck's sake, this piece of shit is useless." He roared in anger as he elected to throwing the weapon away and switching to the pulse rifle.

He was vaguely aware that his pulse rifle was ancient compared to the models used by most. It lacked the grenade launcher capability of the new model, instead with a 360° fire mechanic that was practically useless. He squeezed the trigger, with the rifle churning ultra-low calibre rounds at high hypersonic speeds. The rounds impacted the creature but there was still no visible effect. Jason fired off a plasma shot but the blast simply ricocheted into the ceiling. He muttered a storm of curses as he focused on the creature, but he found something interesting. Behind the creature's shoulders were two glowing yellow spots, almost like tumours. He fired a shot into the area, causing it to roar in anger and drop off onto the tram tracks. The tram suddenly stopped, its breaks screeching as it slowed.

"Now arriving, bridge." The synthetic masculine voice said.

Brandt almost collapsed with relief as he fell against the wall, seemingly exhausted and drained from the ordeal. Jason held Kate in his arms, comforting her over the loss of the last two survivors. Alex grabbed the doors and, with some effort, forced them apart. He took a step outside, making sure the area was free of any creatures. The survivors slowly filed out, glancing around and generally taking advantage of the quiet. Jason checked his plasma cutter and grimaced when he realised he had three shots left of his last charge. They'd have to avoid any potential fight or hope Jason had near super human accuracy. A sudden deep roaring from behind the tram made them all wince in fear. Brandt held his rifle aloft and focused on the source of the sound. He glanced at the trio, sighed heavily and shook his head.

"Nothing left to do." He muttered.

"What?" Jason asked.

"Get to the Captain." He said, his voice proud and commanding.

"What!" Jason said.

Brandt gave a weary smile, one filled with grief and exhaustion. "If I'm being honest, Jason, I've been hearing voices all this way telling me to kill you and then myself." He shook his head. "I'm tried of that." Another roar disrupted the peace, causing Brandt to physically wince. "I can buy you some time."

"Brandt." Kate said, her voice breaking as she welled up.

Brandt shook his head. "None of that, Kate. You need to take care of these pair now." He turned around and faced the oncoming beast. "GO!" He shouted.

Alex pulled Jason away as they sprinted towards the bridge door. They forced it opened and watched it seal to the chorus of Brandt's last stand.


	10. Chapter 10

_(A/N) - And here it is, lovely peoples, the final chapter of my first fan fic. Although technically the Star Wars one was the first but I'm thinking of taking it down and doing a much needed rewrite before uploading it in chapters. I'll see about that though and if I do decide to do that, it won't be till early next year. I'm heading back to uni next week which means I will be monumentally busy. Thanks to all that has read this fan fic, I hope you've enjoyed it. Take care._

 _Chapter Ten_

 _Bridge_

The bridge was blood soaked. Gone was the previous shine of the most presentable deck on the _Dauntless._ The once carefully painted silver walls were now slicked with crimson streaks. Horrifically mutilated bodies littered the ground alongside spent casings. The trio of survivors walked carefully, watching their steps amongst the bodies and careful to avoid making a sound.

"So, hate to state the obvious, but this place is fucked. What do we do now?" Alex asked, keeping his contact beam close.

Jason knew he was hoping for a miracle with the Captain still being alive, otherwise he'd have to come up with another idea. The headache he'd developed on the crew deck was getting worse and he was finally beginning to tire. He just wanted to get of the ship with his friends. "Let's just find the Captain and see if he's got any ideas."

Kate stayed close to him. "Do you think there are other survivors?"

Jason gave a mournful shrug. "I don't know, babe, I just know we need answers."

They walked towards the centre of the bridge, heading for the Captain's console and station. As they approached, they found the wounded Captain laying, barely alive, next to his console. Next to him lay the body of a bridge security officer, two horrific lacerations across his chest. Kate rushed over towards him and checked his vitals using her RIG.

"Captain?" Jason said softly.

Anders's seemed to brighten for a moment, but his breathing was laboured. "Lost the crew in under a minute. Managed to kill a few but they were too brutal. I was trying to tell Brandt to leave, I've sounded the general evacuation order, but I don't think anyone's heard it." He paused to take another painful breath. "Get yourself off this ship, son."

"Not without you, Captain." Jason said defiantly.

Anders gave a painful smile as a single solitary tear came from his eye. "I should've listened to you when we got here, even before. Should've jumped back to Rigel VII." He blinked another tear away. "I just wanted something tangible that we could have used to repair ship and set everyone for life. I wanted my crew to be happy." Anders gave a sorrowful moan as he finally died.

Jason respectfully closed Anders's eyes and stood up. He sighed heavily and looked at the bridge, taking in the sight once again. "Right, we need to get to the shuttles but the tram's out." Alex and Kate agreed with his assessment. "The central elevator leads to the ADS nests with a main airlock. There's usually a few EVA RIGs for space walks and maintenance. We can spacewalk to the hanger, get a shuttle and blast out of here. It'll be dangerous but it's doable."

Alex considered the plan with a hesitant nod. "Sounds doable but it's a long shot."

Kate agreed. "I've never done a spacewalk before."

Jason raised his voice in frustration. "Look! It's all I've got. Walking over the tram lines is suicide with more of those things crawling around. Communications are down, and we don't know if anyone else is still active. We either space walk or die."

Kate was taken aback by Jason's anger and frustration but spoke soothingly to him. "Jason, it's okay." She gently rubbed his arm and pulled him close. "We'll do the space walk and get out of here."

Alex concurred. "Yeah, bro, we'll be fine."

Jason realized he'd gotten angry too quickly and calmed himself down. He pulled Kate close and squeezed her, taking in her smell and just taking a minute. As he pulled away, he shook his head. "I'm sorry. I'm, I'm just exhausted, Kate. I've seen so many people die today, and it's taken a toll. I don't know what else to do." He looked at his plasma cutter and examined it carefully. It was covered in dirt and parts of it showed wear and tear. He'd used it to dismember normal people just to survive. Now, it seemed too heavy to wield. "Let's just get out of here."

The trio took one final look at the Captain and paid their respects. They quickly made their way to the central elevator with Jason pressing the button and waiting for it to descend. It seemed like an age for the elevator to finally arrive, but time seemed to wear Alex down. He gripped his temple with his right hand and groaned softly. As Jason and Kate went to board the elevator, they finally noticed Alex was in some discomfort. Jason went towards his friend and tried to help him up.

"Come on, bro, we need to get out of here." Jason said.

Alex looked at him and physically winced again, pushing him back. "I can't go with you, bro." He suddenly cast an aside glance and muttered to himself. "I know, Millie, I know."

Jason's jaw dropped slowly. "Bro, no."

Alex shook his head. "No, Millie, I can't do that now!" He shouted.

Jason looked around. "Bro, Millie died, years ago."

Alex looked as if he was going to cry, his eyes growing red and watery. "I know that, Jason, I know. But I can't stop seeing her." He looked away for a moment. "Millie, I can't do that, just please give me a minute." He raised his contact beam slowly. "I can't go with you, guys." He shook his head. "I'll get you killed."

Jason finally welled up. "Bro, I can't leave you here."

Alex gave a small smile. "You're not leaving me here, I'm buying you time."

Kate ran into Alex and gave him a hug. "We can't leave you, Alex."

Alex gently squeezed her. "Kate, I need you to look after him. He's going to blame himself for years. But it's not his fault, it'll never be his fault. No one could've asked for a better brother or a better friend." He swallowed hard. "I'm doing this for you and him."

Jason was frozen as Kate took his hand and pulled him towards the elevator. "I'll see you on the other side, brother." He whispered as Alex smiled.

He pivoted on his heel and checked his contact beam. "I know, Millie, it won't be long now."

The elevator doors finally closed on Alex and started rising slowly. Jason and Kate tried to drown out the sounds of Alex's contact beam firing from below.

 _ADS Cannon 122_

Surprisingly, and perhaps the nicest part about the ADS cannon nest, was that it was quiet despite the dull thump of cannon fire. The nest itself was spacious but sparse with nothing but a few vending machines, a line of chairs adjacent to the main cannon connected chair and a fire extinguisher. Jason emerged first from the elevator, checking if the room was clear and finally beckoned Kate into the nest. There was a small corridor that led to the main air lock with a locker that normally contained two EVA RIGS. Jason sprinted down the corridor and once again it seemed his luck wasn't getting better. He silently collapsed to his knees, devastated but before he could react, a chime from his RIG caught him off guard. He physically flinched but quickly answered the call.

" _BOSS!"_

Jason's eyes widened. "Crews? Crews, what the hell is happening?"

Crews was surrounded by flames with creatures running past him, cutting down other miners. "We're under attack! I'm trying to evacuate the deck, but we've had an accident. One of the guys let off a blast from a contact beam and it connected with the fuel pump. We…"

The feed cut into static as Jason stood up and ran back to the main window. He watched as a sudden plume of fire erupted from the rear of the _Dauntless._ Jason's jaw dropped as his shoulder slumped down. He couldn't contain his furore.

"FUCK!" He roared, slamming his fist into the wall. "Shit, shit, it can't end like this."

Kate gently wrapped her arms around his waist and shushed him softly. "Jace, it's okay. C'mon." She brought him to the rear of the nest and sat him down on the chair. Kate didn't waste time and simply used Jason's plasma cutter to break the grass.

Jason smirked softly. "That's breaking the rules, isn't it doctor?"

She shrugged. "Eh, the ship owes me." She handed him a bottle of water and took one for herself. She took Jason's hand and squeezed it softly while resting her head on his shoulder. They both simply looked at the ADS cannon and watched it firing into the darkness. It was the most peaceful it had been for a long time. "You think we'll have to worry about rent?"

Jason chuckled. "Yeah, Mars landlords are often dicks. We're probably screwed."

She giggled. "Didn't that guy say we were a pain in the ass or something?"

"Something like that." He replied. He rested his head against the chair and sighed heavily, resigning himself to his and her fate. "I just wanted to get us out here, you know."

She looked into his eyes and nodded. "I know."

"Me and Alex went to some crappy places when we were military engineers. We never saw shit like this though. We were lucky." He said reflectively. "I never wanted to be a soldier. But the army engineer corps pays for college. We both got lucky."

She stroked his messy hair and leaning against him. "It's also where you met me though." She took his hand. "I wouldn't have changed it for anything. These years have been the best of my life."

He nodded in agreement. "You saved me, you know, that right?" She nodded. "My mom and dad died when I was so young, and I had nothing. Then I met Alex," his voice broke. "And his family took me in. But then I met you, someone who wanted to love me, someone who convinced me I was worth loving. I would've married you, I would've worked to buy a proper house. One where we could've raised kids and had a proper life, with pure oxygen, not that filtered crap and an actual garden."

She looked away for brief second, fishing for something in her pocket. She finally revealed two white pills. "We have a way out."

Jason gazed at the pills and back at her face. "What are those?"

"They can stop our hearts. We wouldn't feel a thing."

Jason considered it and agreed that it was the only way they'd both make it out. But before he did that, he had one thing he wanted to do. Dropping to his knee, he took her hand. "I've been meaning to do this for ages. But we always got busy, either getting deployed or you having to work for a bit longer. Alex started getting annoyed with me because of it." He paused and reached into his back pocket, pulling a small ring with a beautiful diamond. "For most of my life, I've been lost but now, now I've never been so sure of something in my entire life. So, Kate Leigh Mera, will you marry me?"

She gasped softly, tears streaming from her eyes. "Oh my god, yes, Jason, yes." She almost jumped on him as she hugged him tightly, holding him like she never would again.

They lay on the ground and rested in each other's arms. The still dull thumping felt like a wonderful beat now, calming their minds. They kissed each other softly, forgetting that the _Dauntless'_ engines were failing, and that life support was soon going to run out. Jason didn't want to think about the other option, but he knew it was the only way out. "How long does that pill take to work?"

Kate wiped her tears away. "About 30 seconds give or take."

"But it'll work?" He inquired.

She nodded. "I had them made while I was in the storage room. Thought I might need them for any injured that I couldn't save."

Jason looked at the elevator door and quickly connected his rig to door's power supply. He deactivated it and locked the room down. "Those things are probably trying to get to us." He looked down the corridor at the airlock. "We can take it and then open the lock. We'll be out there, and they won't get to us."

Kate considered his idea and nodded. "Yeah, I'd like that. I don't want to be found by those things."

They got up and took their time walking towards the airlock. Jason primed the airlock and sighed heavily as Kate handed him the pill. He stopped her from taking it for a second. "Wait, I need to say it one more time. I love you, Kate, I always have."

She cupped his face in her hands and smiled. "I love you, Jason. I always will."

They took their pill at the same time and Jason waited five seconds before opening the airlock. Air was violently ripped from the room and an alarm went off. Jason grabbed Kate and they embraced as they were pulled out. They didn't even feel the air being ripped from their lungs. They were dead before the lack of oxygen could kill them.


End file.
